Respect is Earned
by Mists
Summary: Respect is never given, it is earned. This is the story of how Wally earns Bruce's respect. A Flash and Batman friendship Fan Fiction. Complete!
1. Fate SUCKED

**---Respect is Earned---**

**By: Mists**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own DC, Justice League, Batman Beyond, or JLU. If I did, the first season of JLU would include Wally in some way or fashion!

Author's Notes: Welcome everyone to my first Justice League fic! This will be my first ever multi-chapter fic. Input and any ideas will be greatly appreciated here. This story is meant to explain how Wally and Bruce came to respect each other in the JL and JLU universe. The best example of this is the "Flash and Substance" episode from the final season (and my all time fav ). This takes place after "This Little Piggy" but before "The Return" in JLU season one. So Shayera isn't back yet. Now onto the fic!

* * *

**-Fate SUCKED!-**

**-Wally's POV-**

How in the HECK did this stuff always happen to him?

He took one mission for the League. One! After several months off to watch over Central City, he took one lousy mission and he ended up in a cast!

Now normally, this wouldn't bother him too much. He was "The Flash" after all. He could heal broken bones in two weeks, tops! The problem was that "Lady Luck" decided to flake on him that day. He couldn't have broken something of little importance like a rib or his left arm. Oh no! He had to break both his LEGS! Which meant the majority of his power was rendered completely useless.

He had only broken his left leg once before, but that was before he got his powers. And now he had broken both! How was he supposed to deal with this?! He couldn't run!

Wally had only been this confined once before, and that was during the…never mind, he didn't need to dwell on that right now.

"_I'll go stir crazy! Two weeks will feel like ten years!"_

Not only that but while he was away, Central City had been attacked! Luckily, the League came in time and no one was seriously hurt. But it _just_ so happened that his apartment building was one of the places hit. Which meant it would need weeks of repair before he could live there again.

So not _only _was he stuck in a wheelchair, but he was now homeless as well.

"_Great."_

It wasn't until the Senior Members' Meeting that fate placed the icing on the cake. It was decided that someone in the League had to watch him.

"_Like I'm a child or something, I swear!"_

They decided that he was too _vulnerable_ in his curtain condition to be left to his own devices.

He couldn't stay with his normal friends because they would wonder how he healed so fast. So it was decided that one of the members of the League would take him in.

"_This may be the most degrading thing that's happened to me…and that's saying a lot."_

They could have chosen to leave him with Fire or the Princess. But nooo…where had his friends decided to place him against his loudly protesting wishes?

"Master Wallace, your coco is ready. I'll be back in an hour for your sponge bath."

Sometimes the Blue Bird of Happiness sings you a tune and other times it shits on your head.

Fate SUCKED!

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Well this is the end of Chapter 1! Next we see how Bruce feels about this little "arrangement." The other bats make an appearance later. And we get to see how Wally's boredom drives him into the cave and play with the Bat-computer. Did you know that Bats has a head set installed in his cowl like Terry?

"Wally to Bats, do you have nachos in this house?"

Bruce:eye-twitch

Hehehe! Oh yes, laughter, Batman Beyond references, and an actual plot are abound! So keep tuned in! Please read and review!


	2. Why Me?

Disclaimer: I don't own JLU or JL. Why did you think that anyway? Do I look like Bruce Timm to you?

Author's Note: Hi everyone! Here's the next part! You asked for it and here he is: Bring on the BATS!

* * *

**-Why Me?-**

**-Bruce's POV-**

Why in the HELL did he agree to this?

Bruce thought as he typed at his computer.

* * *

**-Flashback-**

"_Master Bruce, Mr. Kent spoke with me earlier today about the predicament your teammate is in."_

Damn you Clark!

"_There's nothing to discuss Alfred. He can't stay here."_

"_If I may be so bold Master Bruce, I don't think this is very becoming of a hero of your stature." _

"_I'm the Batman. I'm cold, hard, and unforgiving. I have no 'stature' of which you speak."_

"_That doesn't exempt you from the fact that it is the right thing to do."_

_To this Bruce frowned. Alfred could still make him feel like a misbehaving child, even at forty years old. _

"_Do you want him staying here, calling you _Jeeves _every five minutes?"_

"_Truthfully Sir, it would be a lot better than what some of your drunken '__acquaintances__'_ _call me at your monthly parties."_

_Bruce's eyes narrowed. "Remind me to 'accidentally' spill a whole bottle of sherry on Rory next week."_

_Alfred smiled. "I would Sir, but then I'd have to clean it up. So in the end, your purpose for doing so would be defeated." _

_To this he sighed. He hated when people belittled Alfred because of his position in the manor. But he doubted any of his "friends" would weigh the title of "father figure" worth more than a grain of salt._

"_Back to the subject at hand Master Bruce, I think you should let the boy stay. With Robin away with the Titans so often and Master Dick and Barbara away as well, the manor could use some youthful exuberance for a while."_

_He looked hard at Alfred. He knew he was up to something, but he couldn't pin what._

"_Fine Alfred," Bruce sighed, "He can stay, but when he drives you up the wall don't complain to me."_

"_Of course not, Sir."

* * *

_

Why on earth did Alfred want that hyperactive hummingbird to stay?

It wasn't like Bruce was getting lonely with everyone away. The Batman didn't get lonely.

**Period.**

Bruce shook his head and returned to his typing.

Well, at least Wally was basically immobile for awhile. He wouldn't be zipping up and down the halls, like an annoying fly. And the cave was fairly Wally-proof because of the staircase…

"Hey, Bats how did you get the dinosaur in here anyway?"

"_Fate just waits for me to get cocky." _

"How did you get down here?" he growled.

"Oh! Jeeves showed me how to change the stairs into a ramp. That's handy by the way."

Bruce mentally banged his head on the computer.

This was going to be a LONG two weeks.

* * *

So there you go! Chapter 2 is done! I think I'll have each chapter represent a day in the two week period from here on out. Thank you all for the wonderful reviews! They make me so happy. I really want to write more now! Tim, Dick, and Barbara will make cameos. So please keep the ideas and reviews coming and thank you all again!


	3. Day 1: Never Judge a Book by its Cover

Disclaimer:

Wally: "Hello! Mists asked me to take over her random disclaimer today. She doesn't own me, no matter what she says!! I'm my own man. In control of my own destiny! No matter what she…" _pop!_

_Wally looks down and sees his mouth has disappeared._

Wally: "Mlfh? MMmmss!"

_Bruce pulls out an envelope and gives it to Mists._

Bruce: "As we agreed."

Mists: "Excellent…_counts money_."

Wally: "Mfff? Mnn!"

Bruce: "Mists owns nothing."

Mists: "Except this two million Bruce just gave me, BOOYAH!"

Wally: "mmm…"

* * *

**-Day 1, Week 1: Never Judge a Book by its Cover- **

**-Wally's POV-**

"_Stupid Bruce. He kicked me out of the cave."_

"_Well at least Jeeves is better company then the Bat. Not by much though."_

"Are you done with your plate Master Wallace?" Alfred asked as he cleaned up the kitchen.

Wally grimaced. He hated when people used his full name. It triggered a lot of bad memories he wished to forget. Wally passed Alfred his plate.

"Hey Jeeves, what's your real name?"

"Alfred, Sir."

"Well I'll make you a deal. I'll stop calling you Jeeves if never call me 'Wallace' again, kay?" he said with a smirk.

"Very well… Is 'Master Wally' acceptable?"

"Close enough," he replied with a shrug.

Silence then stretched between the two. Wally hated when he had nothing say.

"Um...Alfred?"

The butler turned to him as he washed the dishes in the sink.

"Yes?"

"Do you need any help cleaning up?" he asked shyly. He always felt guilty when others did things for him. Wally was the kind of person that 'gave' help to others. Accepting help was another story.

"Master Wally," Alfred said very frankly, "You are supposed to be healing and resting. Not helping me with my job."

To this Wally blushed and turned away. He hated how easily he got embarrassed sometimes.

"Sorry Alfred, it's just that I'm bored."

Alfred sighed, "Why don't you look around the house for something to do?"

"Well I can't really go upstairs Alfred."

"We have a vast library in the dean adjoining the main hall. Why don't I show you where it is?"

This news seemed to brighten Wally's spirits as he began to wheel himself down the hall after Alfred.

"Got any comics?"

* * *

**-Bruce's POV-**

_Incoming Call _

Flashed across the Bat-computer. As Batman clicked to open the connection, the face of John Stewart, Earth's resident Green Lantern appeared on the screen.

"Hi Batman."

"What is it Lantern? I'm busy at the moment," Bruce said as he continued typing.

"I just wanted to say thank you for agreeing to take in Flash. I don't know how long this mission for Oa is going to last."

"No problem."

"….Batman, is he doing okay?"

To this Bruce stopped typing, "Why do you ask?"

"It's nothing... It's just ever since he went on leave after the 'Thanagarian Incident' I keep getting this vibe that he's not telling me something."

"_Flash not talk? That didn't even seem possible."_

"Like what? Normally you can get him to stay quiet for five minutes."

"That's just the thing. With Flash when he doesn't want to talk about something he changes the subject by doing or saying something stupid. Normally I don't even notice until a few days afterwards that he never answered my question."

"_That's a strange defense mechanism. But then, I'm one to talk."_

Batman glared at the screen, "I still don't see where you're going with this."

"All I'm saying is keep an eye on him. He-something's wrong. I just know it. And it's not his legs or the League or having to take off from his job…it's something else."

"Fine. I'll keep a closer eye on him, happy?"

"Ecstatic. Tell him I called to say "Hi" and not to go stir crazy in your big empty mansion."

Bruce glared at him. "You've been hanging out with Flash too long."

"True. But that's not necessarily a bad thing. Lantern-out."

Bruce clicked off the window and continued typing

A few hours later, Bruce went up to check on Wally and make sure he wasn't driving Alfred crazy. He found Alfred in the kitchen cooking dinner.

"It will be ready in a half hour Master Bruce."

"Thank you, Alfred. So where is our red-headed guest? Did he raid my dvd collection yet?"

"No, Sir. I haven't had the chance to move the TV down stairs yet. Tim said he'd help me when he came home in a few days."

"Tim's coming home? Why?"

"He said he needed a day away from 'Raven' and 'Beast Boy' bickering all the time."

Though Bruce would never admit it, he was kind of glad that he'd see Tim again, if only for one day. Maybe the house was getting a little…empty.

Bruce changed the subject.

"So what on earth has Wally been doing all this time?"

It was quiet. Too quiet.

"I left him in the library several hours ago. The last time I checked he was still there."

Bruce turned and went down the hall to the library. There he found an unexpected sight.

Almost every book in the room was off the selves, like a whirlwind had hit it. Tons of books were piled onto the floor next to a sleeping Wally.

"_Did he read __all__ of these books in the time that I was down in the cave?"_

Wally was still snoring peacefully as Bruce approached. He was sitting slumped in his wheelchair with a light blue robe over his white T-Shirt and Mario Bros. themed pajama pants over his cast legs. It was then that Bruce noticed the book that sat in his lap.

A comic book was placed over the cover, but he could tell a larger book was hidden within its pages.

Biology? In fact, most of the books surrounding Wally were of chemistry or biology. Not only that, but they were some of his most advanced copies. Why on earth did he choose these books? As far as he knew from his last background search, Wally was just your run of the mill police mechanic. These books should be far too advanced for someone of his level. Bruce frowned. Right now, there was trouble brewing in Gotham and he knew it. Once he had some time, he'd look into this. But for now…

"Wally, wake up. Alfred's almost got dinner ready."

At the word, "dinner" Wally seemed to wake right up.

"YYYyyaaawnnn!"

_Grumble!_

"Oooh! I shouldn't have slept that long without eating first. There are times when having a high metabolism sucks you know?"

"Good morning to you too."

"Uh? Was that a joke from the mighty Bats?"

"Of course not. I was merely implying that you should be more polite."

"This from the guy that glares at people and walks out of the room while they're speaking?"

To that Bruce frowned and walked out of the library.

Wally laughed as he followed, "Wally: 1 Bruce: 0"

"_We'll see West, we'll see,"_ thought Bruce as he and Wally made their way to the kitchen. Maybe having Wally here wouldn't be such a burden after all.

* * *

Author's Notes: Hi everyone! Just a couple announcements here at the end of the chapter. I probably won't be able to write another chapter for a little while. I've got a lot of stuff going on that kinda just popped up. But don't worry I shall finish this fic. I know a lot of writers that never finish awesome works and it's just a pity to have a build up and never get an ending. So don't worry. I will finish it. I promise.

In other news, thank you all for your reviews. As you can see, this isn't going to be a straight humor fic. We are going to get a lot of depth on Wally. We are going to find out some details about his past and who exactly Wally West is. Wally isn't dumb. I'm going with the forensic scientist angle for his job.

But that's NOT why he was looking at the biology book, or at least it's not the only reason. (Evil smile)

He was a mechanic so he could work his way through school, before he got his powers. I'll explain what I took from the series and what I got from Flash comic-canon as I go along. Oh and chapters will get longer now that I used the POV's to set the stage of the plot. Drama and humor people, so except big laughs and a deep plot.

Please keep the reviews coming! They help give me a boost! OH and anonymous reviews are now enabled. It took me a while to figure out how to turn it off. So please review!

Oh and thanks to Lady Jaye for the creation of the sentence "Stupid Bruce." And the term, "sadistic rat with wings." I hope she doesn't mind that I borrow them. They just work SO well. Check out her awesome fics on my favorites page. You'll be glad you did.


	4. A Midnight Stroll

Disclaimer: I don't own or are affiliated with the people that make or distribute the product "Febreze." Nor do I own anything else. See the moths in my wallet!

* * *

**-A Midnight Stroll-**

**-Wally POV-**

He couldn't sleep like this. It was simply pointless. It seemed that the nap he had taken earlier in the day was giving him trouble now. That and the fact that his cast legs were sticking up in the air didn't help either. Sleep just eluded him.

"_Okay, that's it! I'll have a better chance to dose in the wheelchair then in the bed."_

Wally threw the covers off and pushed his body up and into the chair.

_Well at least my upper body is getting a work out from this. Compared to Supes, Bats, GL, and J'onn I look like a ten pound weakling._

Though he wouldn't admit it, Diana and Hawkgirl could probably pound him into the ground too. They just didn't 'look' like they could. Wally always relied more on the power of 'velocity' to make up for his lack of 'physical power.'

That reminded Wally that he hadn't checked out Bruce's anatomy books. He'd have to do so when Bats was patrolling. Getting found in the _library_ asleep with a thousand books around didn't bode well for his "ditz brain" reputation.

'_Speaking of patrolling…Bats would be out right now wouldn't he?"_

A sly, sneaky smile appeared on his face, "To the BATCAVE!"

**

* * *

**

-Bruce's POV-

Night in Gotham always held an air of mystery. Tonight, the Dark Knight found himself staking out an abandoned pier. Watching and waiting always caused the mind to wonder. Unfortunately, instead of wondering about the _case_ he was working on it kept going back to one thing,…Biology?

Bruce gave himself a mental glare.

"_I should've updated my background check on him before I left. This is going to drive me nuts all night."_

Suddenly the communication link in his cowl crackled to life.

"Psss! Bats? You busy?" whispered an unforeseen force.

It would seem that something else would have the honor of driving him over the deep end tonight.

"_Oh for the love of…"_

"Why in the _**hell**_ are you on my private comlink? On second thought, No, _**how **_in the hell are you on my private link is a better question!"

"Duh…I found the headset linked to the computer and the camera link to your cowl running?"

"_Damn it!"_

He could smack himself sometimes. He was so preoccupied with his own thoughts that he forgot to turn off the experimental system he was working on.

He created it to be a sort of tracking system if the others got into trouble. Alfred had already agreed to watch the screen when Bruce was gone. Mostly he created it so he could keep an eye on Tim, Barbara, and Dick while they were patrolling alone.

"Look, Wally. That's a new system I'm working on and I-"

"You're going to use it to keep an eye on the other Bats aren't you?"

"_How did he…_"

"Never mind what it's for. I'm busy right now, so get off the computer and go back to sleep."

"Well from where I'm sitting, it looks like your staking out an empty pier. I doubt that talking to me will distract you much from that."

"_Why on earth did he have to test it out on his own cowl?"_

" _Why couldn't he have just put it in Robin's?"_

"Besides," continued Wally, "two sets of eyes are better than one, eh?"

"**Fine.** Since nothing I say will get you to sign off, you can stay. But you and I are going to have a talk when I get back."

"Oooo.. I'm quaking in my casts, Bats."

He could feel the sarcastic smirk through the transmitter.

Bruce decided to not even dignify that statement with a comment.

But silence never lasts long when the Flash is involved.

"So…Bats…"

"Go to _sleep!_"

Wally just continued on ignoring him, "I was just wondering…how exactly do you survive down here?"

"_What in the heck does that mean?"_

"Wally, I have no idea what you're talking about."

"The _**cave.**_ As in 'How do you stay down here all the time?'"

"I just do," replied Batman with a frown.

"Bruce there's _**LIVE BATS**_ down here!"

"What did you expect there to be in a Batcave? Poodles?"

Bruce just couldn't resist.

"Touché."

"_Bruce: 1 Wally: 1"_

"Well when you ask a stupid question…"

"_**FINE**_… if you _need_ me to spell it out for you. **M- E- T- H- A- N- E**, you rat with wings!"

"What?"

"Bat guano," sighed the speedster, "It releases methane gas! How can you _breathe _down here with that much methane gas?!"

Bruce's eyes widen behind his binoculars.

"_Well… that wasn't what I was expecting. He's the first person to ever notice that before. Not that I have ever had that many people down in the Batcave... But still, I don't even think Alfred knows." _

"Well aren't you full of surprises?" was his sarcastic reply.

"What can I say, I try. So…"

"I use a special combination of enzymes with an antimicrobial base. I spray it around the cave. It brakes down the gas into a harmless vapor. I used it as a prototype to develop the antidote for Joker's laughing gas."

"_Let's see how much of that he understood…"_

"Huh…why don't you market it?"

"Too risky, someone might connect it back to the cave. Wayne Enterprises does produce the chemicals to make it though. We also market the antimicrobial base as a harmless cleaning product."

"…"

"_Ha! Got the little squirt."_

"What's a matter, cat got your tongue?"

"You're telling me… That the base ingredient for the antidote…to the **JOKER'S** gas is _**'FEBREZE?!'**_"

"_Well I'll be dipped. He got it."_

"Bingo."

"……I have nothing to say to that."

"So… how do you know so much about chemistry, kid?"

"_Got you now, brat."_

"Uh….Hey, Bats I saw something moving on the dock..."

Bruce saw it as well.

"_Just as I got the kid cornered too."_

"Go to bed, I have to take these guys out."

"No way, I'm watching your back." Bruce rolled his eyes beneath his cowl. Boy, this kid was stubborn.

"Okay, but try not to talk until I have them all knocked out."

Batman launched his grappling hook and took off.

* * *

It was hours later, when Bruce returned home. He found Wally asleep on the Bat-computer, with drool leaking out of his mouth onto the key panel.

"_If he shorts it out I'll tear him a new one."_

But even as he thought this, a ghost of a smile touched his lips. Wally was a good kid. He always put his whole heart into anything he did. And in a way, Bruce had begun to admire the unpredictable speedster.

He was just full of surprises.

Bruce then got behind the wheelchair and proceeded to back Wally away from the computer and up the ramp to put him back to bed.

This movement caused the speedster to stir.

"Uh…"

"Just rest, Wally. You'll be in bed in a second."

"Thanks…" he mumbled sleepily.

It was then that Bruce remembered something.

"Wally, what do you do for a living?"

"Umm..a forensic…scien…person…gotta catch.. bad guys one way or… nother…..zzzz"

"_Huh. This kid really is full off surprises."_

* * *

Author's Note: Well I had a little time today after all, so I decided to finish this chapter up. Hehehe! Thought the febreze comment at the top was a joke DIDN'T YAH? BWHAHA! I just couldn't resist. In reality though, Bat guano does give off methane gas. I always wondered about Wally's question of how he breathed down there. Yes, I am a science nerd at heart. It's fun to answer it in fic form. Next chapter- Wally investigates the house and decides to play internet checkers on the Bat-computer. Fun shall be had! Hope everyone enjoyed it! And please review!


	5. Day 2: The Flash Virus: ForensicsFred

Disclaimer:

Mists: "No bats were harmed in the writing of this fic."

Bruce: "What do you call sticking me in a house with Wally?" _Bat glare._

Mists: "Well none of the _animal _variety at least. Besides, mental injuries don't count!

Onto the fic!"

* * *

**-Day 2, Week 1: The Flash Virus: ForensicsFred-**

**-Wally's POV-**

"_Gawd…I slept till noon. I feel SO unclean."_

Wally, though never a morning person, had a long standing philosophy that if a person slept to noon, said person was either '**A**: Amazingly Lazy 'or '**B**: Really Freaking Sick.' But considering how late he stayed up last night, he decided to update his options and add '**C**: Exhausted Beyond Belief 'to his list.

"_How on earth does Bruce do that every night?"_

Wally suddenly imagined Bruce pulling up to a coffee shop in the middle of the night and asking for a triple.

"_HA! Like that would ever happen!"_

"Batman needs his coffee! _Now!_" he grunted in a mimicking voice.

This idea sent Wally into a fit of giggles for about five minutes.

"Okay! Time to see what's interesting in this place!"

* * *

**-Two Hours Later-**

"_If someone told me that a billionaire's mansion was the most boring place in the universe, I would have never believed him."_

The house was filled with priceless artifacts and trinkets that lined the walls and adored the shelves, but Wally found no interest in them. It was like they were there for someone else's benefit. They were hollow objects that other people placed worth upon. All Wally saw were dust magnets.

For all the manor had, it lacked one essential thing… warmth.

What Wally couldn't get over, was how…'plastic' it all seemed. This wasn't Batman's home. His home was the cave. And in a weird way, the Batcave held more of who 'Bruce' was then the entire house did.

Wally remembered when he found out Bruce Wayne was really Batman during the 'Thanagarian Crisis.' Of all the people in the world, the last person he would have guessed to be Batman was Bruce Wayne. He was such a carefree party boy on the outside, acting like he hadn't a care in the world.

"_Huh…that sounds familiar."_

People thought the same about the "Flash" as well.

But unlike the Flash, Wally doubted that Bruce placed any of his real self into the playboy image. Except that is, for his need to help the less fortunate. Most 'elites' gave to charities for the press or for tax write-offs…

But not, Bruce Wayne. He always gave to the most honorable organizations. The ones that took very little for their own pockets and gave the money to the people they were created to help.

Wally had gone through the main foyer, seen the crystal chandeliers hanging in an ornately decorated ballroom, went into the dinning hall that could seat an orphanage, and viewed the massive picture windows that stretched across the outer walls.

For all that was lacking on the first floor, there was one place in the mansion that did have warmth to it.

Amazingly enough, it was the library. For some reason, it just seemed to have a different 'vibe' then the rest of the house. As he wheeled back into the room he noticed several things that made it stand out. It had a softer feel to it then the rest of the house. Overall, it was small compared to the other massive rooms he entered.

There was a fireplace at the very back of the room. Fine, yet comfortable leather chairs flanked it with a fairly worn couch. Above the mantel hung a portrait of a loving family. There were three people seated in what looked like the very same room he was in. The father stood at the side of his wife and son. The man was tall and appeared to be quite imposing, but his kind smile hinted at his gentile personality. The woman was small built with hair as red as Wally's own. She wore a string of pearls around her neck and a long light blue dress. Lastly, was the boy. He seemed shy at having his portrait done, but quite happy all the same.

Wally smiled up at the portrait. Knowing who the boy was.

"I see you noticed the portrait," said Alfred as he entered from the hall.

"Yeah, it's nice…. Hey, Alfred can I ask you a question?"

"I believe you already did, Sir," answered Alfred with a smirk.

Wally rolled his eyes.

"Har-_har._ But seriously, why is this room so different from the others?"

"Ah. Well that is because of Mrs. Wayne. This was her… pet project so to speak…"

Here Alfred paused a bit, as if deciding on what he should and shouldn't say.

He then continued, "She loved literature and wanted a space that was just for the family, not other visitors. That portrait wasn't painted too long before…well I believe you know that story."

Wally looked away from Alfred and back up at the painting.

"I remember hearing it when I was younger… He was really lucky."

It was here that Alfred turned a bit cold.

"I think Master Bruce would say a thing or two about how _'lucky'_ he was, _Sir._ But yes, he could have died that night. So in a way, I guess one could see that as _lucky_."

Wally realized his mistake immediately.

"Oh Jeeze! I'm sorry Alfred, I didn't mean for it to sound like that!"

Wally's sincere distress seemed to be enough of an apology for the butler.

"I know Master Wally," he lightly sighed, "It's all right. But I wouldn't phrase it that way in Master Bruce's presence if the subject were ever to arise."

"Yeah… Thanks, Alfred. I'll remember that…" Wally then paused wondering if he should continue.

"What I meant was that he was lucky… to have _you_," he whispered shyly.

"I…" replied Alfred, clearly stunned.

"You said you were, 'in the Master's service since he was in diapers.' There's only one way he could have stayed here and not in an orphanage without someone to take care of him. I know that _quite_ well," said Wally almost bitterly.

He then turned to Alfred with his trademark smile. "I was wondering why he hated it so much that I called you, _Jeeves_. He thought I was being disrespectful, didn't he?"

To this Alfred let out a bit of a chuckle, "Yes. I suppose he did, but he'd never admit it. Don't worry Master Wally, I understand it is the way you show comradery with others. It hasn't bothered me in the slightest."

"Now if only 'Bats' would figure that out everything would be hunky-dory! But I have to admit, I'd miss the annoyed look on his face every time I said it!"

After his talk with Alfred, Wally fell once again to his arch nemesis…_boredom_.

And what does one do in Batman's house when you're bored?

Go down to the cave and play with the ice gun of course!

"_Okay, that's another thing I don't get. Why in the heck didn't Bats disable this thing before he put it into the case? I mean, enemies got down here once before, it could happen again. You really don't need to supply them with extra weapons!"_

Oh well, he'd ask Bruce when he got back. There sure were a lot of weird things down here. Like the giant penny…and…a puppet with a Tommy gun?

Okay… and he thought _his_ villains were whacked.

Let's see what _else_ is on the old Bat-computer shall we. When he got there he found a Post-it note on the screen, "Wally, stay off the computer. -Batman."

"Psss! Like _that's_ going to work with me," said Wally as he crumbled up the note and threw it in the garbage can.

"Okay, let's see here!"

Wally looked through many folders. Most were of cases or stored evidence. It wasn't until Wally came across a file called "Amazon" did a light bulb go on in his head.

"Hello, hello what's this?"

"_Click!"_

"This folder is password protected against the 'Flash' virus."

"What the? _**VIRUS!!**_ I'll show you virus!"

Wally tried all the passwords he could think of and none worked.

"_Well it's definitely something to do with Diana. Otherwise he wouldn't have locked it down. Oh well, I'll come back to it later. I've got two weeks to figure it out. Then I'll rub his face in it!"_

Further searching turned up episodes of "Law and Order" and "CSI."

"_Jeeze! Does he do anything not related to crime solving?"_

Though to his surprise, he found "Smashing Zombies IV" in the _Games_ list.

"_I'm guessing that's Robin's. I'll have to see if I can beat his high score later. That'll freak the kid out. Hehehe! He'll think it was Bats because he's the only other one on the computer! Excellent…_"

After that task had been accomplished, with the added help of his super speed, he went for his two favorite online activities: Internet Chess and Checkers. Since he sucked at poker, he got into these forms of online games. It was fun to challenge and taunt someone halfway round the world, that'll never find you.

He was something of a prodigy on the circuit too. He won against everyone he played. Yes, 'ForensicsFred' was feared by many a gamer.

"Let's see who's on…"

**PrimeMind87:** I see you have returned. We'll see who shall be the victor this time.

**ForensicsFred:** Bring on the checkers, _Brain Boy!_

* * *

**-Somewhere in a Remote Swap-**

"Blast! The human beat me again!" swore Grodd at his laptop.

**ForensicsFred:** You got PWNED! _Does victory dance._

"Once I have finished building the 'Legion of Doom Headquarters,' I swear I will find this 'ForensicsFred' and mount his head upon my wall!" growled Grodd as he typed his reply.

**PrimeMind87:** I will admit that you are a formidable opponent, unlike _others_ I know. But let us see you try your hand at _chess._

**ForensicsFred:** Willing and able, _Mind Meld!_

"_While I have to admit he is almost as annoying as the Flash, his intelligence is far superior." _

* * *

**-Twelve Games of Chess Later-**

**PrimeMind87:** Mark my words 'ForensicsFred,' one day I shall be _victorious!_

**ForensicsFred:** Yeah, yeah…we'll see.

* * *

Author's Note: Well that's it for Chapter 5. A nice long one, eh? Wally discovered a lot of cool stuff today. Next Time- The Prodigal Son, Tim returns! Video games and Oreo eating contests shall be had!

Oh and to answer someone's question, No, Wally doesn't know Dick in this storyline. Though Dick is scheduled to appear eventually and there will be a fast friendship made there. Hopefully it will turn out as good on paper as it does in my head. Happy Day to you all and please read and review!


	6. Day 3: Death by Mac & Cheese

Disclaimer:

_Mist plays the harmonica._

"I own nothing"

_Do dooo do doo…_

"This much is true."

_Do dooo do doo…_

"That's why I have the bluuues!"

"Yeah, I said ….Kraft Macaroni and Cheese!"

"The blue box blues….."

"Cause if daddy wants to please, he's only got to CHEESE ME!"

"I got the bluuuues!"

* * *

**-Day 3, Week 1: Death by Mac & Cheese-**

**-Bruce's POV-**

"_How on earth can there be no food in this house? Alfred just went shopping yesterday!"_

Bruce had escaped the confines of his office to get some lunch before he went over Wayne Enterprise's quarterly reports. He entered the kitchen to find the cupboards and fridge completely bare, expect for one lone box of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese.

It wasn't until he heard the abashed voice behind him that he remembered why his house was now completely bereft of food.

"Uh…Hi, Bats?"

"_Sigh…"_

"I take it that Alfred is at the market, correct?"

Bruce turned to look at Wally. The poor kid was really embarrassed by what he'd done. It wasn't his fault his metabolism was so high.

"Yeah…he said he'd make lunch when he got back," said Wally as he scratched the back of his head.

"That's okay, Wally. I'll just make this box of macaroni and cheese for lunch."

Wally went a bit pale as Bruce began to search for a pot to cook the pasta in.

"Duh…Bruce! He said he'd be back soon. He left almost an hour ago. He should be back any minute!"

Bruce paused with a quizzical look at the red-haired speedster.

"You okay, Wally? You're acting weirder then normal."

"Oh? Oh yeah, I'm fine. Uh…how bout I cook up the pasta! To make up for eating all the food in the house, eh?" he said almost franticly.

"Wally, you can barely reach the stove in that wheelchair. What are you going off about?"

"_I've never seen Wally freak-out like this before, I wonder what…"_

Then it dawned on Bruce.

"_OH for the love of…He told WALLY? Of all the people in the world, he told Wally THAT story. I was ten. __**TEN!**__" _

This made Bruce pull out his coldest Bat-glare.

"Wally, I have no idea what exactly Alfred told you. But I **can** boil water!"

The glare did the exact opposite of what he intended. It just hardened Wally's resolve. The paleness that had come over his face disappeared and Wally sent back the glare with just as much intensity as Bruce. He wheeled his chair in front of the stove and folded his arms.

"Alfred said that you can boil water for experiments in the lab, but when it comes to the kitchen only bad things happen. I gave him my word not to let you anywhere near the stove until he came back!"

"Wally, I was ten. _TEN_."

"And Alfred hasn't let you near the stove since. Five firefighters, Bruce? Alfred said half the west wing was gone!"

Bruce bent down and got right into Wally's face.

"FIRST of all, it was only three and SECONDLY this is my house! And I'll use the appliances in it, whenever I wish!"

"Well Bats, you're going to have to go through me to get to it!"

"FINE."

* * *

**-Wally's POV-**

"GAAAH!!" Wally screamed as Bruce's massive push sent his wheelchair barreling down the hall.

When he finally came to a stop, Wally called back, "That was the LOWEST of _**LOWS**_ you big prick! If you want to barbeque yourself, then fine! Don't come crying to me!"

Wally just sat there fuming where he had stopped. But after a few minutes his resolve broke down.

"_Sigh…I'd better get the fire-extinguisher. Alfred would never forgive me if I let the brat blow himself up."_

* * *

**-Tim's POV-**

"_Man! It's good to be home."_

Tim placed the kick stand on his bike down and removed his helmet. After the "Brother Blood" incident all the Titans agreed to get some R & R. Tim hadn't been home for the longest time. He was actually beginning to miss the old cave.

He looked around and as usual nothing had changed since he'd left. Tim got out of his costume and hung it back into the case.

"_Hehe…hopefully that will tip off Bruce that I'm home. He can notice the tiniest clue, but people are just invisible to him sometimes."_

Tim then made his way over to the Bat-computer with his digital camera.

"_I think I'll photoshop Bruce's head onto a chicken and put it as his background, just for good measure. Or maybe I'll put up that picture I took of him and Diana when she 'stayed over' for 'Justice League business.'" _

Instead, Tim became sidetracked and decided to pull up his copy of "Smashing Zombies IV."

"Time to see if I can beat my…WHAT THE HELL?!"

On the Bat- computer, the high scores were displayed for the young Titan. His old top score now appeared at the _bottom_ of the list.

Tim's jaw hit the floor as he beheld the _amazingly_ high scores that were apparently made by one 'Dark Knight.'

"_There is NO WAY that Bruce would even PLAY my game let alone score that high. Did Dick come home without telling me? Something is VERY wrong here, unless…"_

**BOOM!!!!**

A massive explosion from upstairs shook the whole mansion right down to the cave. Tim wasted no time. He grabbed his mask and belt, not even pausing to take off the camera around his neck as he rushed through the clock doorway.

"ALFRED!" called the teenage boy in a panic. He hoped he was okay.

Smoke filled the house. All the smoke alarms were going off. He could hear a fire-extinguisher being used in what sounded like…the kitchen? Tim pulled out his robin boomerangs and prepared to attack. A yellow powdery substance coated the wall across the hall from the explosion. He didn't like the look of that. It might be poisonous. Two men were coughing in the kitchen.

He could take them by surprise while their guard was down.

Tim sprung into the doorway and halted just before he let his robin-rangs fly.

Two men were on the floor covered in yellow goop and fire-extinguisher foam. The explosion had embedded several elbow macaroni and a WHEELCHAIR into one of the plaster walls. The reason Tim stopped in mid-throw was because he noticed Bruce was one of the men on the ground.

The other man had casts on his legs and a fire- extinguisher. Somehow the man had landed on top of Bruce, like he had tackled him out of the way of something.

Tim just stared at the two as his brain tried desperately to make some sense out of the weirdest scene he had ever beheld.

"_WTF?!"_

"Gasp!"

Tim turned to new voice and found Alfred standing there, apparently just as dumbfounded as he was. The butler dropped the bag of groceries he was carrying in shock.

No one spoke a word until, Alfred roared at the top of his lungs, "MASTER BRUCE! YOU ARE _NEVER _TO USE THE STOVE AGAIN!"

When this statement reached Tim's brain, he collapsed into a fit of laughter. But not before using the camera that was still around his neck to preserve this moment for all eternity.

* * *

**-Bruce's POV-**

After much untangling and treatment for minor burns, Bruce and Wally sat with Tim for some well deserved lunch…or maybe by now it was considered dinner.

Bruce was still sulking over the fact that Wally had to save him from death by Mac & Cheese. He'd never live this down. This was even worse than when Circe made him sing, "Am I Blue?"

"_Hmmm…I wonder if she had something to do with the stove blowing up... I mean cheese doesn't usually spontaneously combust."_

At least Bruce was comforted by the fact that Wally would NEVER know about the singing pig incident. All evidence of said event was destroyed, with the exception of the few pictures Bruce had and the QuickTime file of his…performance stored only in his computer mainframe for reference. It would never see the light of day again.

He had to give the kid credit though. Wally had stuck his arm through the hoop of the extinguisher and launched himself from the wheelchair using just his arms for momentum to knock Bruce out of the way. The backlash of his push had actually embedded the chair in the wall.

"So…" said Wally, "you're Robin, I take it."

"Uh…" said Tim nervously glancing at Bruce, not knowing how much the other man knew.

"It's okay, Tim. He's the 'Flash.'"

"Really? Awesome! Nice to meet you, Tim Drake."

"Wally West, same here." The two shook hands.

"So why exactly are you staying with the boring old Bat?"

Bruce growled at the comment.

Wally proceeded to tell Tim his tale of woe. And the level of boredom he had to endure in the manor house. Bruce was serious contemplating smacking Wally upside the head.

After Wally was done, a thought had occurred to Tim.

"Wait a sec…you're the one who beat my high score aren't you!"

"HA! You're good! Bats trained you well. How'd you figure it out?"

"Psss! Like Bruce would ever play a game other then chess."

"_I am in the __**ROOM**__ you know!"_

"Wally, I thought I told you to stay _OFF _the Bat-computer!"

Nether of the two even acknowledged his comment.

"Yeah, I know what you mean. Bats is a real stick in the mud. Hey! I think I saw Alfred unpack some Oreo cookies. What do you say to an eating contest?"

"I say you're on!"

The two left the room in search of Alfred and where he put the cookies.

"_I hate being ignored."_

* * *

**-Two Hours Later-**

Bruce came into the den where Tim and Alfred had set up the TV for Wally. Both Tim and Wally were on the couch groaning about cookies being evil.

"How on earth did you eat that many, Wally?"

"Two reasons: One is a high metabolism. Two is that I had a lot of practice against J'onn."

"The Martian?"

"Yup! The very same."

"…He doesn't seem like the type to do something that…spontaneous."

"Well…I seem to bring out that side in people."

Tim just gave him a look.

"Well… you know what I mean. Besides he LOVES Oreos. It's become a game between him and I. The food shipment comes in on Tuesdays you see. J'onn takes half of the Oreos and hides them all around the Watchtower. If I find them, I get to eat them in front of J'onn and drive him crazy. If I can't, he has them all to himself and dryly comments that I'm 'Losing my Touch' or something like that. It's a lot of fun really. J'onn's actually gotten into the spirit of the whole thing."

"…You guys in the League are _so_ weird."

"This from the boy who lives in a 'T'?"

"Touché."

At this point, Bruce REALLY fed up at being ignored, coughed to get the dynamic duo's attention.

"Oh hey, Bats! Well Tim I'm pooped," said Wally as he lifted himself off the couch and into his wheelchair.

"I think the 'Flash' could stand to get forty or fifty winks after single handily saving the 'Batman's' life from the pasta of doom."

"Shut it, Flash," grunted Bruce.

Wally just flashed him a smile and turned back to Tim.

"I'll see you tomorrow, kiddo. You and I can play some video games and share some more embarrassing stories about Bats here, okay?"

"I'd like that Wally. See yah."

After Wally left, silence permeated the atmosphere.

Bruce was actually the one to start the conversation.

"So…how long will you be home?"

"Just another day and a half, I really can't leave the tower too long you know."

"Yeah…so…would you like to go patrolling with me tonight?"

Bruce was never really good with emotions. Tim eyed him questioningly.

"Um…I really just wanted to rest tonight. Will tomorrow night be, okay?"

"Yeah, sure. Get some sleep Tim."

Bruce briskly walked out of the room, but turned back to Tim quickly and said,

"For what it's worth. I'm glad you're home."

Tim sat frozen at these words and Bruce left in a rush.

"_God! Wally must be rubbing off on me. I'm never that-"_

"Bruce!" called Tim as he ran out of the room after him.

As Bruce turned, Tim hesitated, unsure of what to do.

He suddenly lunged the few feet between him and Bruce and gave him a quick hug.

"I'm glad I am too." Tim then rushed off to bed without another word.

All Bruce could do was stand there with one thought going through his mind, _"……I think I'm beginning to understand what John meant by it not being 'a bad thing.'"_

* * *

Author's Note: Well there you go! Another chapter down! So Tim is staying a bit longer then I thought. The video games and other antics with Tim and Wally shall be in the next chapter.

Oh and I forgot to say that John's line in Chapter 3, "That's not necessarily a bad thing." was a shout out to Super Chocolate Bear's fic "Send Me On my Way" Supes says it to Shayera at some point about Wally. So that was Bear's line not mine. Check out the fic, it's one of my faves about Wally. Oh and the whole Oreo game is once again a shout out to Lady Jaye and her awesomeness. I hope she updates soon.

Okay now I know what everyone is going to say. Dick is the Robin in the Teen Titans series. Yes, I know. I watch it. But for fic and continuity purposes, I made Tim the Robin in the tower. It's just easier and adds more depth to the character this way. There will be other little changes as well, for example Barry Allen wasn't the first Flash. Wally is the first, but Barry does exist. You'll find out later. Some other characters back stories will be tweaked too. But nothing totally AU. So no worries!

So is everyone liking the clues I'm leaving in the disclaimer? Hehehe! Yes I know I'm random and evil. Thank you all for the reviews! Hope you enjoyed the chapter! See yah later!


	7. Day 4: Fun and Games

Disclaimer: Please don't attempt what you are about to read at home. Tim and Wally are professional idiots. And they shall face Bruce's wrath for it. Enjoy.

* * *

**-Day 4, Week 1: Fun and Games-**

**-Bruce's POV-**

_Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!_

"WEEeee!"

_Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!_

"WEEeee!"

"_Whoever is making that noise shall die by my hand."_

Needless to say, Bruce was not in a very good mood. He had to stay up pretty late last night trying to catch the Penguin. Having bird crap and fish guts flung at him for most of the night didn't help his mood either. At least the maniac was off the streets for a while.

For some reason though, a very loud noise was coming from downstairs. It was disturbing his slumber. He was going to find it and put a stop to it. Right, _NOW_.

"All right! Now let's use the ramp in the cave. Remember Tim, you're turning when I say so."

"Ready, Captain!"

"_What on earth are those two doing now?"_

As Bruce searched for the offending troublemakers, he noticed tread marks on the hallway rug. Wheelchair tread marks to be precise, having been made by a chair traveling at great velocity.

"_Please tell me they're NOT doing what I think they're doing."_

Bruce reached the clock entrance to the cave just as the dimwits where about to launch off again. Tim was clinging to the back of Wally's wheelchair as the speedster prepared to turn it, into a drag racer.

"Tally-ho!"

"WHAT ON EARTH DO YOU TWO THINK YOU'RE DOING?!"

"GAHH! Book it! It's Bruce!"

"WHEEL AWAY!"

Wally and Tim sped down the cave ramp to escape Bruce's wrath. They went a little too fast this time though and ended up slamming into Bruce's giant stuffed dinosaur.

"_Shit!"_

Bruce raced down the ramp. Once he looked them over to make sure they were okay, he screamed their ears off.

"Of all the STUPID things I've seen in my time! That had to be the dumbest stunt by far! Do you WANT to re-brake your legs, Wally? Because you're going to do it at this rate!"

"Aww, Bats. I didn't know you cared so much!" said Wally as he got back into his righted chair with the help of Tim.

Bruce looked like the bulging blood vessel on his forehead was going to burst.

"I don't! But the rest of the team will have my hide if I leave you battered and broken in a dumpster somewhere! And worst of all, Tim, you should know better!"

Wally just rolled his eyes.

"Look Bruce, I'm sorry. I just wanted to get some exercise is all. It was my idea. Not the kid's. So if you want to yell at someone, let it be me. He was just making sure I didn't ram into anything."

"Oh! Of course, how could I have _been_ so foolish! My mistake."

"Sarcastic doesn't work on you Bats."

"Just _GO_. Both of you. Just go back upstairs and clean off the rug before Alfred comes home. Then do whatever the hell you want. Just make it quiet, okay? I have an appointment at 4 o'clock and I need some sleep!"

"Yes, Sir! Right away, Sir!" said Wally as he grabbed Tim and speed up the ramp before they could get yelled at some more.

"_How many more days until Wally leaves?" _thought Bruce as he started back up the ramp.

* * *

**-Wally's POV-**

"Whew! That was close!"

"Yeah, I know. Usually I get reamed out a lot worse then that," said Tim knowing just how much Bruce yelled on a daily basis.

"You're right, even with me here he would have taken us to town. Something is up."

"Agreed, but Bruce is right. Let's clean up the rug."

"Yeah, I doubt Alfred will let us get away with that. After were done, we can go play video games in the den."

"Sounds like a plan to me."

* * *

**-Four Hours Later-**

Tim and Wally sat on the couch in front of the TV. 'Mario Kart' was the game of choice for this hour. They had played through 'Halo,' 'Soul Caliber,' and 'Super Smash Brothers.'

Tim had come to a general consensus as he threw down his controller for the eighth time that day.

"Okay that's it! Playing you is like playing the computer! This sucks! I didn't even come close to winning one game," he exclaimed.

"Sorry, kid. I haven't found a way to turn off my speed all the way yet. The game still seems slow to me even when I'm not consciously using my powers."

"Man…that must suck in everyday life."

A contemplative look crossed Wally's face. He hoped Tim hadn't noticed it. "Yeah sometimes it does. But I like to look at it as making good things last longer!"

"…What about the bad things?"

"_Looks like Tim did catch it. Sharp as a tack that one."_

Wally just let the comment slide off of him. "I deal with those as they come."

Then he changed the subject, "Hey! I just remembered. I found a folder that Bruce locked me out of on the Bat-computer. Want to help me crack the password?"

"Are you sure? It might be for one of Bruce's cases. He'd get pretty mad if you messed with it."

"_Looks like the boy-wonder can get side tracked."_

"The folder's name is entitled 'Amazon.'"

A sly smile slowly formed on the young teen's face.

"Amazon, eh? Well…_maybe_ it wouldn't hurt to take a _peek_…"

"That's all I'm saying," replied Wally, "Inquiring minds want to know! Bats is preventing our search for enlightenment!"

To this Tim laughed, "That's the biggest bunch of bull I've ever heard."

"Yes I know. Its statements like those that make John want to hit me. Or at least that's what he says. But lately, he's been loosening up and even going along with quite a few of my hair-brained schemes."

"John? As in Green Lantern?"

"Yup! As we go down the cave, let me tell you a little story about Supes, Bats, GL, and Wondie having to face Morgan La Faye…. "

* * *

**-Two Hours Later-**

We find Wally and Tim back in the Bat-cave totally stumped by what the password could be. Wally has his head on the keyboard and Tim is playing with a dust bunny he found on the floor.

Tim wasn't going to give up yet.

"Princess?"

"No. Tried it," answered Wally not even taking his head off the keyboard.

"Wonder?"

"Lame. He'd never use something so simple."

"You're right," Tim sighed, "Um…Thermyscira?"

"Nope, that's the first one I tried."

"Well…then I got nothing."

"We have to figure this out! It's the principle of the thing now!" said Wally as he sat his head on his folded arms. He stared hard at the screen. He had cracked codes before. He had even tried the code that Bruce had given to him during the Justice Lords incident to get them out of the holding cells. Nothing worked…

"_Unless…"_

"Hey, Tim. Maybe we're going about this the wrong way."

"What do you mean?"

"Maybe the password doesn't have anything to do with Diana directly. It could have to with an incident that revolved around her."

Tim stood up and looked over Wally's shoulder, "How so?"

"Well…the computer says this folder was created just two months ago, right?"

"Right…"

"Then logic would dictate that the event housed in the folder happened around that time, correct?"

"Yeah, I guess so. But how can we guess the details surrounding a private event around Bruce and Diana?"

"You're assuming it was a private event, Tim. Never assume anything. It closes the door on too many things. That's the first rule of being a….hero."

"_Whew! Almost let my job slip. The Flash can't be known for more then he is, a non- threatening goofball. I'll lose my element of surprise when I need it."_

Tim just rolled his eyes at this. "You do realize that was a Batman statement, right?"

"_Pull back from Forensic mode!"_

"Yeah, well…shut up!"

"Now that sounds more like you."

"_Close one"._

"Anyway, back to what I was saying, I think this might have something to do with the League."

"Why?"

"Well I heard that a few months ago Bruce and Diana were on a mission that went awry. But that's all I ever heard of it. Everyone involved in the mission was sworn to secrecy."

"That's odd," said Tim as he leaned on Wally's chair, "So what are you looking up now? I thought you said there was no information on it."

"For _normal_ Leaguers, the official case file would be off limits. But since I'm a Founding Member…"

"You have total access to case reports!"

"Bingo!"

Wally pulled up the case on the screen. There wasn't a lot of information recorded on it there either.

"_What the heck is up? What's the big secret that Bruce is trying to hide?"_

"Huh…all the file says is that Circe turned Diana into something and Bats got her to change Diana back."

"That's weird. Why would Bruce hide something like that?"

"Not sure. But we do have one new password possibility now."

"Which is?"

"Circe."

Wally typed in the name in the password box.

_Password Accepted_

Tim and Wally whooped for joy and pulled up the QuickTime file they found within.

"Now let's see…what……"

"_Am I bluuue?"_

* * *

**-Bruce's POV-**

Bruce had just finished dressing for his 4 o'clock _appointment_ which was actually an early date with Diana. After the 'pig' incident he had given in and had taken Diana on a couple of dates since. He planned to be back by 9 so that he and Tim could patrol together for old time's sake.

"_Hopefully Tim tired Wally out with all those dare devil stunts this morning that he'll sleep through the night this time and not pop-up in the cave."_

"Master Bruce, Mistress Diana is here."

"Thank you, Alfred."

Bruce went down the central staircase to foyer where Diana was waiting for him in a beautiful red wine colored dress.

"You look stunning as usual Diana." said Bruce as he kissed her hand.

"Always the flatter, you know very well it won't get you anywhere."

"Can't blame a man for trying though."

To this Diana smiled.

"That sounded like a Wally statement."

"Don't even joke about such a horrifying thought," said Bruce as he gave her a quick glare.

It was hard for him to get mad at Diana, but that really wasn't funny.

Diana laughed at his pompous attitude, "Fine. So where is the red-headed devil anyhow?"

"I'm sure he's around here somewhere, causing havoc with Tim by his side."

"Oh, Tim's home? I'd love to see him. He hasn't been home in a long time."

"Yes…well, we're going patrolling tonight which is why I made our date so early. I hope you don't mind."

"Not at all Bruce, you and Tim need some 'bonding time.'"

Bruce frowned at her word choice.

"It's called 'crime fighting.'"

Diana just brushed him off, "Whatever, so how is Wally dealing with this whole thing?"

"He's his usual annoying self as far as I can tell."

"Can I see him or did you throw him out of a window already?"

"Yes, you can see him and no…well not yet anyway. My guess is that they're in the cave again. I can't seem to keep Wally out of it."

"Really? I thought he couldn't stand the dark dank place."

"Well since I'm down there most of the time, he keeps coming down to annoy me."

"Ah, I see."

The two made their way to the clock and down the stairway into the cave. Fits of hysterical laughter could be heard as they made their descent.

"_Oh my God. Did the Joker get in the-"_

"Am I Bluuue? Ain't these tears in my eyes telling yoouuu?"

"My spleen! I think I ruptured it!" cried Wally from the ground as he pounded on the floor.

"I. CAN'T. BREATH!" screamed Tim in a similar state next to Wally.

"_There goes any dignity I had left."_

"How _**DID**_ you two-" Bruce's tirade was cut off by Diana.

"You had a copy of it and you didn't tell _me?!_ I only heard about it. I want to see it too!"

"Hey, Di! Come join the party! We're watching it for the twelfth time!"

Diana reached down and helped put Wally back into his wheelchair.

"Well it looks like your recovery is going well."

"Of course! Laughing at Bats is the best medicine of all!"

"Grr!"

"Oh shut it, Bruce. You have a wonderful voice! I have no idea what you're so upset about. I wish I had copy of this."

"You do, _**your Swineness**_, I already sent it to you via email and to the other original members too!"

Bruce's hands tighten into fists.

Diana's eyes narrowed at the speedster. "Watch it with the pig jokes, speedy. I'll let it slide this time because you sent me the video, but next time I won't be so kind."

"Sorry, Di. I just couldn't resist! I left out about the pig info when I emailed the others. All they have is Bats singing against his will."

Diana gave him a warm smile and a quick peck on the forehead. Bruce's jaw nearly hit the floor and Wally's face turned completely red.

"Uhh..duh."

"That was sweet Wally. You get better, okay? Nice to see you again, Tim. Come on Bruce we're going to be late."

Diana then proceeded to drag a still shocked Bruce out of the cave to their date. She called back, "Have a nice evening you two! We'll see you later!"

Tim picked himself off the floor and dusted off.

"Come on, I want to send the file to the Titans and Green Arrow before Alfred calls us up for dinner. They'll love it! Hey…Wally? Earth to Wally! Are you there?"

"Um…did she really kiss me?"

"Yes…"

"Sweet! All right, let's send this baby to more people. It is such GOLD!"

* * *

Author's Note: Another day down! Next time: "A Night Time Serenade" Batman and Robin go out with Flash on the communicator. The plot is going to kick in next chapter so hold on to your hats. It's going to take longer to plan out, and I've got a few things popping up so I don't know when I'll be able to update next. Don't worry, I won't let the story go to the way side though.

Oh and as you can tell, I have decided to bum up the rating to Teen. I hope everyone's okay with that. With the vocabulary level in this fic I figured I'd up it just to be safe. As always please read and review!


	8. A Night Time Serenade

Disclaimer: All I ever learned about forensics, I learned from CSI. I don't own it. So if I'm wrong blame them!

The first joke is in honor of the greatest 80's cartoon of them all. The Real Ghostbusters. It's just as good now as it was then. If you can find episodes, watch them. You won't regret it. Egon is Batman, Peter is Wally Enjoy!

* * *

**-A Night Time Serenade-**

**-Bruce's POV-**

"You'd _beee_ too. If every plan that you hadd, done fell throouugh…There was a _timmee!_"

"_Wally,_ do you know how to set the Bat-computer to self-destruct?"

"Umm…no."

"Well I, _**do**_."

The dynamic duo was together again patrolling the streets of Gotham city. But a little annoying voice decided to tag along via headset.

"I don't know Batman…Flash sings pretty well too," said Robin as he swung in the air after the caped crusader. "Maybe you two should get together and sing a duet!"

"Don't encourage him, Robin. Mark my words, I will make both of you pay for this."

Batman and Robin landed at an abandoned warehouse. They had received a tip that several disturbances had been reported in the area. It was their job to check it out.

Batman went in first and Robin flanked behind. The Dark Knight gave Robin the hand signal to split up. Robin was to circle round the back of the building and sneak in. Batman would find a way in from the ceiling and draw the criminals' attention when the time was right. That would give Robin time to implement a surprise attack from behind. It was a good plan they had used many times before.

Batman repelled down through the broken skylight. He landed and took cover. All seemed clear.

"Batman to Flash," he whispered, "Can you access the video-link in my cowl and do an infrared scan of the building."

"Already on it Bats…" came the hushed reply.

"I don't see anyone on my end," came Robin's voice over the com-link.

"Okay you two. The coast is clear. There are no human heat signatures in the area."

"Good, Robin meet me near the broken cage on the ground floor."

"You know a 'thank you' would be nice," said Flash a little put out.

Batman's grunt was his only reply.

"That's the best you're ever going to get out him, Flash. I gave up trying a long time ago," replied Tim as he came to a stop next to the broken cage.

"Yeah well, we'll see."

Batman landed next to Robin and the two started to look for clues.

"So Batman, how long have you had a video-link in your cowl?" asked Tim casually as he began to take pictures of the building.

"It's a new device I'm working on. The infrared scan worked better then I had expected."

"Oh so it's _not_ a new way for you to spy on Nightwing, Batgirl, and I then?"

A Flashy snicker could be heard over the com-link as Batman replied, "Of course not. Would I do anything as invasive as that?"

"YES," came both Flash's and Robin's reply.

"_Children."_

"Never mind, just look for clues. The sooner we get out of here the better."

Batman didn't like the feel of this place.

"So Batman, what exactly are we looking for?" asked Tim.

"Word on the street is that an illegal poaching or animal testing lab was run out of here."

"Well the broken cages seem to support that."

Robin bent down and took a close up picture of the broken bars on one of the cages.

Many large to medium sized cages scattered the floor. All were empty, but some were broken from the inside out. An animal breaking out couldn't avoid being cut at least once. Oddly enough there was no blood on any of the cages. Or on the floor for that matter…

"_Now that's odd…"_

"Maybe…"

"Hey Bats. Do you smell anything?"

Now that Flash mentioned it. There was a faint smell of bleach. At first he had chalked it up to the fact that bleach would be used to clean the cages of fesses. But now…

"Yes, it's bleach."

"Got any luminal?"

A faint smirk formed on Batman's face. He pulled out a small spray bottle from his utility belt and sprayed the cages and the floor. Next he pulled out a small black light and shined it over the area.

"Swirl marks."

Robin came up behind Batman and asked, "What's that mean?"

Flash answered, "It means that these guys know their stuff. Bleach not only hides blood residue from the luminal test, but breaks down the DNA residue as well."

Robin was a little shocked to hear this coming out of the Flash of all people.

"You sound like you know a lot about this."

"Yeah…well."

"_Payback time."_

"Of course he does. He's a forensic scientist," said Bruce as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"…"

"_What?"_ exclaimed Robin in shock.

"I…you…well…_OH_ you so **SUCK!** How did you-"

"Later, Flash. Right now we're looking for more evidence. Any ideas?"

"Yeah," sighed the caught man, "Look behind or under things. They might have missed some residue….Bats, I don't like the looks of this."

"Yeah… I know."

"What are you two talking about?" asked Robin, "It seem pretty straight forward to me. They were scientists and knew to get rid of the blood."

"The reason is _why,_ kid," said Wally seriously, "The broken cages being left here is enough of a tip off that something was going down with animals was involved. Why would someone just leave them here, but yet go through all that trouble to bleach away every last speck of blood?"

"They're hiding something bigger then just the animals," said Robin coldly.

"Bullseye."

The two searched everywhere. Finally they found some blood on a small piece of broken cement near the western side of the warehouse. It wasn't much, but they bagged it. A dust for prints turned up nothing. Hair samples were scarce. Which was another strange thing, it seemed that they were very careful to erase every trace of DNA evidence they could. What hair pieces they found were rendered useless once again by the bleach.

* * *

**-Wally's POV-**

Wally sat at the computer analyzing the whole scene from Bruce's angle the best he could. He really didn't like this. Something big was being covered up. He could feel it. He just couldn't tell what.

It wasn't until Batman moved one of the heavy cages did one sold piece of evidence role out, a broken syringe. They tagged and bagged it and did one more search before they left.

"Flash, I have full docket tomorrow. Since you're so _bored_ all the time, why don't you start processing this while I'm away?"

Wally stuck his finger in his ear to check for wax.

"_Nope, clean as a whistle."_

"…Did I just hear you right? …You trust me to do that?"

"I want to get this processed as soon as possible."

"_That wasn't exactly a __**yes**__, now was it?"_

"Best- You- Are- Going- To- Get," said Robin as he finished exploring the northern end of the warehouse.

"I'm not giving up on him yet, Robin."

"An eternal optimist aren't you?" asked Bruce as he and Robin prepared to leave.

Wally snorted, "You _know_ it!"

"The optimist verses the pessimist, who's view of reality will come out on top?"

"Quiet, Robin. Okay Flash we're done for the night. We'll be home in an hour. Please go upstairs and get some sleep. You are still healing you know."

"Yeah, yeah I will _mom_."

A giggle could be heard over the com-link. Bats' incurring glare could be felt over the com-link.

"Batman and Robin, signing out."

Wally sighed and turned off the video-link.

"_At least I won't be bored tomorrow. I wonder how Bats found out about my job. I thought I covered it up pretty well."_

His mind was working out a thousand possibilities a minute about the evidence surrounding this new case. Tomorrow would be an interesting day.

Wally put his left hand on the wheel of his chair to make his way back upstairs. Suddenly he froze and brought his hand up to his face.

Electricity slowly began to surround his palm and arc off the back of his hand. He began to shake all over, as he watched his hand start to flicker in and out of existence.

"_Oh no! Not again!" _

Wally grabbed his wrist and closed his eyes tight. He took deep breaths in and out in a desperate attempt to slow himself down. After a few minutes the electricity began to fade and his hand slowly regained its solidity.

"_Whew…that was a close one. It looks like case evidence isn't the only thing I'm going to have to investigate tomorrow."_

Wally flexed his hand a few more times and then proceeded to wheel himself up to bed.

He really needed some sleep now, no matter how restless it would be…

* * *

Author's Notes: Dun dun DUH!

_Grins evilly and runs away!_

Review!


	9. Day 5: Pretzels and Small Talk

Disclaimer: _Mists checks in._

_Finds cookies and iced mochas on her review page._

Sweet! Hi everyone! Since you asked for it onto the fic!

* * *

**-Day 5, Week 1:** **Pretzels and Small Talk-**

**-Wally's POV-**

"Hey, Alfred! Does Bats have a centrifuge in this cave?"

Tim and Wally were setting up Batman's lab equipment on his large lab table.

"I'm sorry, Sir. The motor broke on it three weeks ago. Master Bruce is still waiting for the replacement to be delivered."

"Wonderful, gotta love the mail system. Well let's see…" said Wally as he scratched his chin in thought.

He then snapped his fingers, "Got it! Alf, can you bring down the blender from upstairs please? I think jury-rig its motor to work in the centrifuge."

Alfred turned to leave when a sour look appeared on his face. "Did you just call me 'Alf?'"

Wally blushed a bit and scratched the back of his head. "I take it that you don't like that one that much."

"Hardly."

Wally just rolled his eyes. "Well I can't keep calling you Alfred! It's just…so _formal_," he said with a shiver, like it was a dirty word.

"As much as it pleases me that you consider me a friend, _Master Wallace_, I suggest you keep trying."

"Gahh! Okay I get it, I'm sorry!" exclaimed Wally at hearing his full name.

"Hehehe…Wallace," said Tim as he finished hooking up the gas to the Bunsen burner.

"Quiet you!!"

Tim just ignored him and lit the burner. "Well that's that. Everything's set up. As much as I'd like to stay and chat. I've gotta pick up with Cyborg scheduled in twenty minutes outside of Gotham so I'd better hurry."

Tim was already in his Robin costume ready to go.

"Aww…you're gonna leave me here alone with Bat-guano?" asked Wally with a pout.

"Well you'll have Alfred here, now won't you?" said Tim trying…and failing at the fake sympathy.

"But he's pissed at me for the 'Alf'crack! Now they'll both be after me!"

"I've never heard a superhero _whine_ before."

For that Wally put him in a headlock and gave him a super-speed noogie.

"OW! Watch it you'll set my hair on fire!"

"Hehehe! Sorry, kid," said Wally as he let him go.

"Man that stung!"

"Look who's the whiner now!"

Tim just stuck his tongue out at him.

"_Very_ mature. Well I'll see you around, Tim. You and your team be careful, okay? There are a lot of crazy villains out there."

"Yeah, don't I know it… It was great meeting you, Wally. You take care as well."

The two then shook hands.

"Sure thing, squirt."

Robin turned and headed for his bike. He was just about to put on his helmet when he called back, "Oh and Wally? Tell Bats 'bye' for me too, okay?"

"Will do!" replied Wally with a smile as he waved goodbye.

Robin then turned back around, put on his helmet, started up his bike, and drove out of the secret passage way in the cave.

* * *

**-Bruce's POV-**

"_God, that was a long day."_

The taxi left Bruce off in front of the manor. He was too tired to call Alfred to pick him up so he just jumped in the first cab he saw to take him home.

Bruce put his jacket away and headed to the kitchen for a snack. He saw a note on the fridge from Alfred.

"Went to the grocery store. –Alfred."

"_Again? Why am I not surprised…"_

Bruce sighed and went down to the cave to see how much progress the speedster was making.

He found the kid in a lab coat, wheeling around the work table concentrating on various experiments. Wally was munching on a pretzel stick hanging out the corner of his mouth.

The box of snacks was on the floor next to the speedster.

Bruce approached him from behind and asked, "Can I have some of those?"

This caused Wally to jump in his chair. "GAHH! Jeeze, Bats! You really are silent death, you know that? You scared the crap outta me!"

Bruce just rolled his eyes with a bit of a smirk on his face and picked up the pretzel box.

"It's my job, what can I say? And besides consider it payback for the QuickTime file."

He then stuck his hand into the box and started to munch on the pretzels.

"Hey! Those were mine…"

Bruce swallowed and replied, "No they're mine. My house, my pretzels. Besides I'd eat something else but there's no food…._again_."

Wally looked away and played idly with his fingers.

Bruce just shook his head and raised another pretzel stick to his lips. "How on earth do you have enough money to pay for all the food required to keep that metabolism of yours going?"

"I don't," came the whispered reply.

Bruce stopped munching on the pretzels. "I beg your pardon?"

"I said. I _don't,"_ sighed Wally, "Look, don't look at me like that! It's just that…remember the whole 'Lightspeed Bar' thing…and how I made a big deal out of it…"

Bruce slowly nodded his head. Wally looked a little ashamed.

"I…didn't do it for the fame. I just wanted you guys to think it was that….to hide the real reason…."

"And that was…"

"They gave me a lifetime supply in exchange for being their spokesperson, no strings attached for having a hyper-metabolism either. I can have as many as I want for the rest of my life."

Bruce was stunted by this revelation.

"_And all this time, I thought he did it just for fame and money. I was really annoyed with him after that. In reality… he was just trying to feed himself."_

"Wally I-"

"It's fine, Bruce. You don't have to say anything. I don't want pity. That's why I kept it secret."

Wally scratched the back of his neck. "For the first time ever, I had enough money to not only live, but splurge a bit too," Wally laughed, "I still don't know what I was thinking with that 'Flash-mobile.' I always wanted one like it when I was a kid. Tastes change though, huh?"

Bruce saw a window to bring Wally out of his stupor, he took advantage of it.

"John told me it had a zebra print rug and a disco ball," he said almost teasingly.

"Hey! Don't diss the disco ball! That was cool!"

"_There's the Wally I know. So he was fulfilling a childhood dream. Figures, only a ten year old would want a car like that. I wonder though… what else Wally has kept hidden from us."_

"Whatever, anyway back to the subject at hand. What were you able to find out from the blood sample and the syringe?"

He watched carefully as he saw Wally switch gears and went into 'Forensics Mode.' Oddly enough, 'Forensics Wally" wasn't all that different from 'Flash Wally.' The jovial, kind-hearted attitude was still there. But the intelligent side of Wally seemed to come out the best in 'Forensics Mode.' Why that was, Bruce couldn't say. He just didn't know Wally well enough to know all the answers…

Part of him began to wish he did.

"Okay, so here's what I found. I ran the blood sample under the DNA analyzer, here's what it said:"

Wally handed Bruce the read out.

"Inconclusive?"

"Yeah, so I ran some tests of my own on what little I had left. Apparently this sample contains both human and animal DNA on it."

"That would confuse a DNA test all right… But what about the syringe?"

"Nada. It was sterilized. It could have been left there by a druggie for all we know. The make is generic so we're back to square one."

"These guys are good. So what do you think, illegal animal testing?"

"It's possible. But that doesn't account for the human DNA. Now the blood could have been from someone who got hurt and the blood mixed together or…"

"They might be trying to fuse the animals with human DNA .That would be a good reason to get rid of any DNA evidence."

"Makes sense to me."

Bruce rubbed his eyes. "Looks like we've hit a dead end. I'll set the computer to search for any leads to where they might have gone. But until we get another lead, it looks like we're stuck."

"Yup. Hey Bats, you look beat. Go on and take a nap in the den. I'll wake you up when Alfred comes back from the store, okay?"

"I'm _FINE_…" he yawned.

Wally rolled his eyes. "Yeah right. Go on now, we can't have Batman falling asleep when he's on stakeout now can we?"

Bruce gave him a brief glare. "Yes, _mother_."

He dogged the book that Wally threw at his head and walked up the stairs for a well deserved nap.

* * *

**-Wally's POV-**

After Bruce was gone, Wally pulled out two slides that he had been hiding. He put one under the microscope.

"_Well my cellular structure seems pretty stable now. He warned me about staying still too long. The speed force must be building inside my body because I haven't been able to run for the last few days. It's making my cellular and atomic structure unstable. I'll just have to use my speed in other ways until I can run again."_

Wally then proceeded to wash all the lab equipment and store all the evidence at super speed. He the pulled out the other slide and the sample of his blood he took earlier.

"_It's time I work on my pet project. Let's see how much I can accelerate the growth of these cell cultures by concentrating my speed force on them. I know I'll find a way to do it, it's just a matter of time. I hope this works, someone needs to find a solution to these problems soon."_

Wally sucked in a breath, concentrated, and got to work.

* * *

Author's Notes: Well it seems that Wally is working on a secret experiment. You'll see what he's doing in the next chapter. I'm going to look at a possible use of Wally's powers that I don't think anyone else has even thought of before. I hate how many scientists in the comic world only use their advanced knowledge to hurt people, Wally is doing the exact opposite of that.

Who is this 'He' that Wally mentioned about warning him about the speed force? You'll just have to wait and see.

Next Time: Bruce finds Wally's experiment on the table with him asleep next to it and confronts Wally about it. Also two very unexpected guests will stop by. It's going to be a pretty long chapter and I've got a lot of stuff going on next week so I'm going to take my time with it. Don't worry. I think I'll have it up by the end of the week.

_Mists munches on cookies._

Thanks for the cookies and please review!


	10. Day 6: Reunion

Disclaimer: I don't own Batman Beyond. Okay people. This going to have quite a bit of drama in it, so hang onto your hats.

* * *

**-Day 6, Week 1: Reunion-**

**-Bruce's POV**-

Bruce sat at his upstairs desk. He was drinking some coffee and reading the morning newspaper.

"_I'm glad I got most of the company business handled yesterday. I won't have to meet with the board again for a long time. That young upstart, Powers, is really getting on my nerves." _

At meetings, he puts on the fake smile and playboy attitude just like his cape and cowl. It wasn't so much the _board_ that he had trouble with. Almost every member had been hand picked by him or his late father. They were trustworthy, loyal people. Bruce made doubly sure of that. If anyone was becoming corrupt, he'd be the first to know.

It was the other 'big' businesses that they dealt with that annoyed Bruce. Many didn't have the same kind of 'business integrity' that Wayne Enterprises held. One such company was 'Powers Incorporated.' Steven Powers and his twenty year old son Derek were always trying to pull the wool over Bruce's eyes. They were trying to monopolize Gotham city. But the sad reality was that to keep Wayne Enterprises afloat, they had to deal with the conglomerate on some level.

He'd find a way to deal with them when the time came.

A knock came at the door.

"Master Bruce, may I speak with you for a moment?"

"Of course, Alfred. Come right in," said Bruce as he put the paper down.

"Good morning, Sir. I hate to bother you, but I think there is something that you must see."

Alfred's face was never known for its expressive quality, but for once the man appeared generally worried.

"What's wrong?" asked Bruce, grimly preparing for the worst.

"When I awoke this morning, I couldn't find Master Wally anywhere. It wasn't until I checked in the cave…Sir, I think it best that you see this for yourself."

Bruce got up and followed Alfred down to the cave.

"He didn't fall asleep down there, did he Alfred?"

"I believe so, Sir. He seemed cold so I put a blanket on him. But that's not what you need to see."

A few minutes later they reached the cave. Bruce saw a tuff of red hair sticking out of a covered lump. Wally was slumped over the lab table with various test tubes and slides scattered all over.

"_He finished the DNA analysis for the case yesterday. What on earth was he doing all night?"_

Bruce approached the table and gently pried the microscope out of Wally's grip. He adjusted the focus and looked through the lens.

"_Living tissue? Could this be what those biology books were for?"_

Bruce then proceeded to look at the test tubes. Each was labeled.

"Nanotech enriched blood, White blood cells, Platelets, Tissue…"

It was then that he spotted an open notebook lying under Wally's head like a pillow.

Looked like had no choice, if he wanted answers he'd have to ask Wally directly.

He bent down and started to shake the young man's shoulders.

"Wally-Wake up."

To this, Wally took in a sharp breath and started to stir a bit.

"Come on, kid. You have some explaining to do."

Suddenly Wally shot right up, like he had awakened from a nightmare.

"No! D-"

At this point Wally began to blink and take stock of his surroundings, he breathed out a sigh of relief. That was until he felt a glowering presence over his right shoulder. He scrunched up his face as he slowly turned around, knowing full well who he was going to see.

"Hi Bats…"

"Wally, care to explain this?" asked Bruce pointing to the blood samples on the table.

"_OH_…That…uh, you know, trying to find out how fast I'm healing…."

Bruce gave him an unflinching stare.

"Um…I mean checking my blood for anomalies. One can't….be….too-"

Bruce reached over and pulled out the notebook from where Wally's head was resting.

Wally went to grab it back.

"Bruce that's priv-"

_**GLARE**_

Wally quickly withdrew his hand, "Or not!" he croaked.

"Speed Eradication and Enhancement Test on Nanotech & Human Cells," read Bruce aloud.

Wally just gulped and slid down further into his wheelchair, desperately trying to disappear.

"Test one: Eradication. I have found the frequency at which nanotech resonates. I can eliminate it without damaging the cellular structure of both blood and tissue. The amount of energy required on my part is extremely high for such a small sample.-"

Bruce looked hard at Wally. The speedster just placed his right hand on his head and gestured with his other for Bruce to continue.

"'A larger sample may very well take my life'-Wally how could you attempt something that dangerous and not tell me?"

"I didn't 'attempt' it.," said Wally while making the finger quotes, "I was just drained after having done that one sample. I know_ my _limit, unlike _some people_."

Bruce ignored the verbal jab and continued reading, "'I won't replicate this in large scale-'"

Wally gave him a glance that had, _told you so, _written all over it.

"I wish you'd use this level of vocabulary on your mission reports. Having to read: 'And the stuff blew up good, it was cool.' Gets old after a while."

Bruce dodged the pen flung at his head and continued,

"Other Possibilities for Use: If I can discover the resonance at which infected cells are destroyed, leaving healthy ones intact, this may ….this may be a way…to cure all types of cancer."

Bruce swallowed and read on,

"Nanotech isn't advanced enough to accomplish massive microscopic surgery yet. Even when the technology reaches that point, having nanotech left in one's cells could cause other complications. If I can get white blood cells to hold a speed resonance for and extended period of time, that risk won't even be an issue."

"_That…might actually work."_

"But Wally, that could take years to find. You have no idea if healthy and sick cells have resonate differences. That's not the same as eliminating a foreign inorganic object from one's body."

Wally sighed and looked Bruce in the eye, "I know that. But I still have to try."

"_The eternal optimist. I swear I've never meant anyone so stubborn and directly set against all the odds." _

"So is that all you're working on?"

"No, if you'd read on, I also talk about the enhancement aspect of speed. It can help generate new cells to re-grow organs or limbs. If someone can make a full blown clone of Kara and accelerate her age, then I can find a way to do this."

Bruce just looked down and shook his head. He had to admit, Wally was quite right.

"What's that mean?" asked the speedster with his arms indignantly folded.

Just then Wally's stomach betrayed him with an offending growl.

"Owww..."

Bruce held a small, nearly invisible smirk.

"Nothing, now let's get you upstairs for some breakfast before you pass out. Then I want you to take a nap. You've done enough work today, Einstein."

"Oh come on Bats, tell me!" said Wally as Bruce pushed him up the ramp.

"_I just wish all scientists, were as honorable and caring toward others, as you are."_

But Bruce would _**never**_ admit it aloud. The kid might get a big head.

* * *

A few hours later, after Wally had eaten and went to bed, Bruce found himself in the library catching up on some reading.

"Master Bruce," came Alfred's voice from the doorway.

Bruce looked up from his book.

"Someone is here to see you, Sir," said Alfred.

"Very well, please show the person in."

Alfred turned to someone standing outside his line of sight.

"Right this way," said Alfred as he gestured for the person to enter the room.

"_What's he doing here?"_ thought Bruce as the good 'doctor' came in.

"Fate," he stated as the golden helmeted sorcerer strode towards him.

"Good afternoon, Batman," Fate said with his usual ethereal elegance.

Bruce gestured for the man to sit.

"Thank you," Dr. Fate said politely.

"I take it that this isn't a cordial visit..."

"No, I am afraid not."

Dr. Fate paused and considered how to continue.

"I have a favor to ask of you."

"_I really don't like the sound of that." _

Magic and favors never mixed well with him. Logic doesn't apply when it comes to magic. That's why it vexed him so much.

But Bruce was willing to give Fate the benefit of the doubt.

"Go on…"

Dr. Fate cleared his throat.

"You see, I have taken on a certain ward to stay within my citadel. She has sent me in her stead to ask if she may visit with your present house guest."

"Wally? But -_ah_, I see."

"So you understand why she sent me, I take it."

"Yes. I do."

"Would you allow her a short visit then? When she heard he had been hurt, she became very distressed. She is not ready to return and confront you all, not yet. But she wishes to see Flash to make sure he is alright."

Bruce closed his eyes. He didn't trust her. She had done nothing to earn back any validity in his eyes. She ran away, instead of facing them.

On the other hand, they couldn't have saved earth without her help. And if he gave her no chance to gain back his trust, then he would be no better then her. Forgiveness, was a concept that Bruce had a very hard time with.

"_How can one forgive others, when one can't forgive one's self?" _

Another thing to think about was how Wally would react if he found out that Shayera wanted to see him and Bruce denied it.

"_Why can't anything in life be easy?" _Bruce mentally sighed.

* * *

**-Wally's POV-**

Wally was resting in his bed. He heard the bedroom door softly creak open and close. He stirred and slowly opened his eyes. When he realized who was standing in his room, his eyes widened tenfold.

"Shayera?" he whispered her name as if she were a ghost.

"Hey," she said as she avoided Wally's eyes. Her right hand griped her left arm across her chest.

"Long time no see," she finished with a shrug.

Wally was still having a hard time believing she was really there. He sat up in bed and stared at her.

"Shayera…"

She then took a deep breath and slowly raised her head to look at him.

"Wally, look I heard that you had gotten hurt and I-" she suddenly stopped as she saw that both his legs were in casts.

"Yom Shigureth! You broke _both_ your legs! I can't leave you alone for five minutes, can I?!"

"_Now that's the Shayera I know."_

"Hehehe…nope," he laughed, "Guess not. Now come over here and give me a hug, Birdnose."

Shayera came over and gave him a bone crushing hug.

"Gahh.._Shy_-popping ribs now!"

"Oh, sorry…" apologized the hawkgirl as she sat down beside Wally on the bed.

The two sat quietly for a few minutes.

Wally began to twiddle his thumbs.

"Sooo…where have you been?"

"I've been staying with Dr. Fate… Trying to figure out my purpose in life," she sighed while playing with her hands.

"I'll take that as meaning it's not going well, huh?"

Shayera placed her resolved mask back on.

"Look Wally, I just wanted to see if you we're okay…... You look like crap, you know that?"

"Well aren't you the _'Blue Bird of Happiness,'_" he said sarcastically.

"Do I look 'blue' to you?"

"Well you're certainly acting 'blue,' now aren't you?"

Shayera just avoided the subject again.

"So how'd you end up staying with 'cranky ass?'"

"Loooong story."

Shayera took a long, hard look at Wally.

"Is he treating you all right? Because I swear if he isn't I'll-"

Wally gave her an affectionate look as he covered her mouth to shut her up.

"Shhh..Sis. I'm fine. Bats has been okay. Actually…it's been pretty interesting staying here so far."

Shayera nipped at his fingers to get him to let go.

"Yip!" said Wally as he shook off the offending bite to his right hand.

"Well you deserved it…." Shayera stared at Wally as his words began to sink in.

"Wally…why did you call me that?" asked Shayera softer then usual.

"_What? Oh… uh-oh…_"

Wally began to blush and looked away from her.

"Uh…well…I've…um…kinda always thought of you…like that….I mean we always bicker like we're…brother and sister….so..I don't-"

"How?"

The question interrupted Wally's train of thought.

"How, what?"

Shayera looked away ashamed and barely spoke above a whisper, "How can you care for me like that, after all I've-"

Wally grabbed her shoulders and turned her to face him.

"Shy, look at me and listen closely."

Shayera slowly brought her green eyes up to his cool blue ones.

"You were in the ultimate no-win situation. In the end, you chose your morals over your very own world. You couldn't let your people eradicate another race for their own gain. They would have been no better then the Gordanians if they had. They could have destroyed us all, but you gave us the means to stop them. How could I hate you after I heard the whole story? Not everything you did as Hawkgirl was false. I know that to the depths of my heart to be true."

Wally enveloped her in a hug and held her with all his might.

"No matter what anyone else says or does to you, remember that there are people who genuinely love you. Everything else will fall into place in time."

Shayera buried her face in his shoulder and shook with a thousand emotions that she fought to control.

"Is…is that another 'Granny Flash' saying?"

"Yup, and it was her best one, too."

She slowly lifted up her arms and gently returned the hug.

"Thank you."

"No prob, Sis."

The two then broke apart, both acting really embarrassed that they had gotten so…_mushy_.

Wally coughed and looked away while Shayera stretched her arms and wings.

"So..Hey! I just realized something!" said Wally excitedly.

"What?" asked Shayera dreading the hyperactive speedster's answer.

"This is the first time we've been in the same room together without our masks!"

"Yeah! You're right…some how I pictured you with red hair and those mischievous blue eyes."

"_Mischievous! _I'm hurt. And here I thought you had a beak for a nose!"

Shayera's gaze turned murderous.

"WHAT WAS THAT?!"

"Um…now, Shy! I'm already in casGAHHTS!"

* * *

**-Bruce's POV-**

Noises of things being thrown could be heard throughout the house.

Bruce and Fate moved away from the bedroom door.

"They should be finishing up soon. I will take Shayera back to my home again. She still has a lot to think about, but this trip has done her a great deal of good."

"Yes," was Bruce's simple response.

"I believe that you have a great deal to think about as well."

Bruce stopped walking for a moment.

"What does that mean?" he asked giving Fate a hard stare.

"You saw that Shayera isn't the person that you perceived her to be and you also saw that boy at his finest."

"I will admit…he does have a way of growing on you."

"_Like a fungus…"_

Fate gave a small laugh.

"No, he heals. That child has been scorned by Fate many times over. And still he loves, and still he heals."

"_Scorned? Please, how can an optimist like Wally West know the depth of fate's scorn?"_

Fate turned to him as if he had spoken aloud. "You are not the only one who has lost all he holds dear, Bruce. Wally simply deals with it differently then you do."

"What in the hell does that mean? That all this was fated to happen! That we have no control over our own lives?"

Bruce was getting angry now. He didn't like his reality being mocked.

"Fate is ruled by the choices we make, Bruce. There are some things in life that are truly unavoidable, no matter how many precautions we make. That is 'Fate.' It is how we choose to cope with those events, that decides the out come of our existence. On the path that boy is on now, he will be the catalyst for a great many things to come."

Fate turned and continued down the hall.

"You'd do well to learn from him, and not allow the evils of the world to destroy your very soul… _They_ wouldn't have wanted it that way."

Bruce glared at Fate's retreating back and stormed the opposite way down the hall.

* * *

Author's Note: Boy that was a hard one to write. You guys have no idea how long I had to rethink this chapter through. I think I got in everything I wanted to say. I hope I didn't bore, confuse, or offend anyone with all the hypothetical medical jargon. I tired to explain it as best I could. I hope it made sense.

Okay so only Bruce and Wally have seen Shayera and Fate has sworn them not to tell the rest of the league where she is. So only they know and my continuity with the show still works placement wise, right before the Return and after Little Piggy.

Now next chapter is a break from all the drama! Prepare for MORE insane mayhem again as Dick comes home to find a red haired intruder in the cave! Fun shall be had and beer shall be drunk!

_Mists munches on the brownies left on the review board._

Oh and so far no one has gotten who Wally's "He" is. Though I have to admit **ladisme**'s guess was _really_ good. I didn't even think of that. You're right, in that I'm thinking outside the box here. That's right, it's not Barry, Bart, or Jay. I have a very different person in mind that I think you all will like and be surprise to see him in this fic.

Next chapter will be awhile people. It might be next week some time, this is a big week and weekend for the Mists.

Wally: Please, you're going to parties and to see Spiderman 3.

_Mists grabs a mallet out of mallet space and whacks Wally on the head._

And other important stuff too. But don't worry it will come out eventually. Thank you all for your wonderful support and reviews! They really inspire me. Please continue to read and review!


	11. Day 7: Two of a Kind

Disclaimer: Because sometimes, you just gotta watch a movie where something splodes. XD

Anyway I don't own the rights to the songs, "The Saga Begins" or "Smells Like Nirvana" by Weird Al. Or..do the rights belong to Lucas and Nirvana… WHATEVER! I'm quoting the songs for kicks and giggles. Since Weird Al does it for a living, we should have no problem.

I also don't own (nor would I ever _want_ to own) Mission Impossible III.

* * *

**-Day 7, Week 1: Two of a Kind-**

**-Wally's POV-**

Extreme boredom has once again driven our intrepid hero down into the depths of the Batcave, to play chess on the Bat-computer. PrimeMind87 wasn't on, so Wally found someone else to taunt.

**ForensicsFred:** Dude. Look all I'm saying is you can't win. I've already beaten you 30 times. You want to try another game or-

Wally heard something faintly move on the western side of the cave.

"_Could have been a bat. But I'd better check it out."_

**ForensicsFred:** BRB, Braniac.

Wally wheeled over to the costumes, pulled off Robin's mask and put it on. He also nicked a few batarangs just to be safe. He wheeled around the cave cautiously. He was getting nervous now. Wally didn't like being vulnerable. Drawing from his superhero experience, he could tell someone was there. And whoever it was could hide really well.

Wally took a deep breath and tried to slow down his rapidly beating heart. He then focused on listening to the world around him…

* * *

**-Dick's POV-**

"_Someone is in the cave."_

Dick Grayson, the original boy wonder, had picked today of all days to drop by the Batcave and as usual, annoy Bruce.

He had parked his cycle a couple yards away from the cave entrance and clicked on the invisibility shield. Dick wanted to see if he could surprise the old man by sneaking up on him in the cave. It had become a test between him and Bruce since he had become Nightwing.

He had carefully made his way in through a camouflaged air vent after deactivating the alarm with his code. Once inside, he jumped from stalactite to stalactite until he had a good view of the Bat-computer.

The person sitting there was most definitely _not_ Bruce.

"_Shit! Someone is hacking into the computer. At least I have the element of surprise."_

Nightwing shifted his body carefully, trying to get a better view of the intruder.

Suddenly the red haired man froze. He finished typing and quickly made his way over to the costume case.

"_He must have heard me. This guy's pretty good. Let's see how well he can fight in that wheelchair."_

He saw the man come to a stop. Nightwing waited and then let a batarang fly.

**Crack-Snap!**

Dick's eyes slowly moved to the batarang that was embedded just a few inches away from where he had been. The man had waved his arm so fast that the gust of wind diverted Dick's aim and sent one right back at him.

"_Okay that's it! No one shows me upon my own turf. Time to pull a Batman."_

Nightwing launched another batarang. This time though, he was not aiming for the man, but for the light control panel. Everything in the cave went dark.

Nightwing smiled sinisterly.

"_Now to screw with his mind."_

* * *

**-Alfred's POV-**

"_I'd better inform Master Wally that I'm going to pick up Master Bruce."_

Alfred opened the secret passageway behind the clock and walked into the cave. The first thing he noticed was that the lights were off. Suddenly the sounds of a struggle assaulted his ears.

"_Oh my!"_

Alfred hurried to the circuit breaker on the side of the staircase. The lights came on and revealed two men wrestling on the floor.

"Master Wally and Master Dick! What the devil are you two doing?!"

Nightwing and Wally answered at the same time.

"He broke into the cave!"

They both looked at each other and said, "No I didn't! YOU DID!"

"That is enough! Both of you! Nightwing, that is Master Wally, he is an associate of Master Bruce. He is staying here trying to heal from his injuries, not acquire _new_ ones! Master Wally, this man is Dick Grayson, Master Bruce's other adopted son."

Both men sat on the ground and pouted like a couple of ten year olds.

"Now I have to go pick Master Bruce up at a charity luncheon. I suggest that you clean this mess up before I return."

He got out a broom and a mop from the side closet and handed them to the ashamed men.

"Yes, Alfred," they replied.

"Good, now both of you boys get along. I won't be back for several hours so I suggest you play nice."

With that Alfred left the two adolescences to their own devices.

* * *

**-Wally's POV-**

After Alfred left, Wally and Dick talked the whole situation through and had a good laugh about it. Dick helped Wally back into his chair and the mess didn't take long to clean up when you had the world's fastest man on your side. Soon Dick was changed out of his Nightwing costume and the two men went upstairs for a beer.

"So you were the original Robin?" asked Wally as Dick got out two beers from the fridge.

"Yeah, after my parents died, Bruce adopted me," he replied. Dick handed one to Wally and the two made their way to the den where the TV was set up.

"Did he know them well?"

"Um…no actually. I went looking for Batman. I hoped that he could help me avenge their deaths. From there, I don't know really. It just kind of happened…"

Wally just nodded understandingly.

Dick continued, "You can never tell what's really going on in Bruce's head or what his motives are…"

"You sound bitter there," said Wally as he pushed himself out of the chair and onto the couch.

Dick just smirked. "Maybe I am, a little. He always treats me like a child. Like nothing I do is good enough for him. When I do something wrong, I get reamed out for hours. When I do something right, it's just brushed by, like it was a fluke."

Wally sighed, "You're preaching to the choir here you know? The whole _League_ treats me like that, not just Bats. And I'm even one of the original seven!"

"Ouch. Burn."

"Too true."

"Just because you and I are 'young,' we're treated like immature loose cannons."

"I know! Never mind that you've been doing this since you were a teen and been at this a lot longer then most of the _older_ heroes."

"Yeah!" said Dick, "And you helped found the League _and_ defeat Grodd! He was a massive bad guy. I remember reading it in the paper."

"Dang straight!"

Both sat brooding on the couch about the unjustness of it all.

"That's it. I need to see something splode." said Wally.

Dick raised an eyebrow at the red-head.

"Come again?"

Wally began fiddling with the pile of dvds next to the couch.

"You know like 'gigantic fireball' action."

"Yeah…"

"Life sucks and there are times when a person just needs to sit back, and watch something harmlessly splode."

Dick started to laugh, "Isn't Hollywood great?"

"Oooo! 'Mission Impossible III!'"

"But that movie _sucks_!" whined Dick.

"Yes, but things splode good!"

Dick still didn't look convinced.

"_Time to pull out my trump card."_

"I'll let you watch the dvd I burned of Bruce singing, 'Am I Blue?'"

Tim had sent him the QuickTime file, but Bruce had hacked onto his computer and deleted it before he could see it.

Dick sighed, "Fine, but we are going to need more beer. It's the only way I'll sit through that sorry excuse for a plot."

"It wasn't that-"

Dick just gave him a look.

Wally frowned and said, "…Okay you have a point. Get the beer."

After the movie, Bruce's solo, and three more beers, Wally and Dick started playing CDs and singing with the lyrics. Wally was playing air guitar and Dick was jumping up and down on the couch.

"OOoo! Weird Al! This is the 'Star Wars' spoof! A LOOoong Looong Time Ago. Naubbooo…was under an attack!"

"OMG! We need Lightsabers! I'll get Tim's!"

And thus the 'Great Drunken Lightsaber War' began. (a.k.a 'Grown men reduced to playing with Plastic Toys.')

* * *

**-Bruce's POV-**

Alfred was driving Bruce home in the limo after the luncheon.

"You seem quieter then usual, Sir. May I ask what is troubling you?"

Bruce was still brooding about what Fate had said.

"'_Learn from Wally.' That must be an oxymoron."_

"It's nothing."

The butler glanced at him in the rearview mirror.

"If this is about what Master Fate said yesterday, I would be inclined to agree with him, Sir."

Bruce glared at the back of the man's head.

"_I swear he's better at eavesdropping then me."_

"I didn't _ask_ for your opinion, Alfred."

"And yet, here I am still giving it to you."

Bruce really hated him sometimes.

He sighed, "Fine then, maybe _you_ can explain to me what I can learn from the Random Hyperactive Hummingbird, known as Wallace Rudolph West."

"It is something that can not be explained."

To this he snorted, "I just don't get it."

Bruce turned and looked aimless out the window.

"No, you don't," came Alfred's frank reply.

A small smirk then appeared on the butler's face as he whispered,

"But I have a feeling….that you will, in time."

They drove the rest of the way home in silence.

* * *

When the two arrived at the manor, they were assaulted by a very loud and grating noise coming from the den.

Guitar riffs and REALLY bad drunken singing could be heard from the hall.

"WELL WE DON'T SOUND LIKE MADONNNNAAA! HERE WE ARE NOW, WE'RE NIRVANNNNA! SING DISTINCTLY, WE DON'T WANNTAA ! BUY OUR ALBUM, WE'RE NIRVANNAA!!!"

Dick and Wally were screeching the words in each other's faces. Dick then proceeded to start break-dancing while Wally laughed hysterically on the couch.

Bruce just stared at the two, totally at a lost on how to react.

Alfred came up behind him recording the entire event with a video camera.

Finally at the point in the song where the gargling started, Dick took a massive swig of beer and gargled along with the music,

"GLLUUGLLAAAGGGGGGGGLUGGAAHHHGULLLHHH…_GULP!_"

Beer and spit had flown everywhere. Then Wally pulled out three kazoos and shoved them all in his mouth.

"Zuuuzuu ZZZuuuuZUuZuuZUZUU!!"

Dick finished the measure by playing on the funnel and tube they had used for a chugging contest earlier. Then he collapsed onto the couch in a fit of laughter.

That was it. Bruce couldn't take it anymore. He covered his mouth and ran out of the room. He could still hear their singing as he reached his upstairs bedroom.

"SAYONARAA!! SAYONARAA!! HAYONAWAA!! HAYONAWAA!! HYYGGGAWWWAA!! HYYGGGAWWWAA!!

HHHHHEEEEAAAAAYYYYHHHHAA!! GAGG! COUGH!!GAAGG!"

Bruce locked the door and slammed his back against it. As he slid down to the floor, he started to breathe heavily. With each breath it quickened, to the point were it became painful. This hadn't happened to him since his parents died, in front of others it was always faked. But here it was being ripped out of him, like an old wound cracking wide open. His heaves became strained. Then they hardened up and became choppy and short.

He fisted his hand and pressed it hard against his mouth. He desperately tired to suppress the severe onslaught of emotions he was experiencing. He pressed his eyes tightly shut as a single tear rolled down his cheek.

"_No! I shouldn't. I can't. I can't allow myself too! I don't deserve to-"_

The final nail in coffin came when he heard slow music start downstairs.

Suddenly Alfred bellowed at the top of his lungs,

"MASTER DICK! STOP TRYING TO SLOW DANCE WITH ME! I AM _NOT _A LADY!!"

Bruce's laugh was bold, full, and genuine as it tore through his throat like a triumphant cry. It boomed with a joy that he had long since suppressed and denied himself since his parents died. At first it was painful, but now it was cleansing. He laughed and laughed until he was sore.

And as he sat there with tears of joy and release rolling down his face, he thought,

"_Maybe you're right Alfred. I think I'm finally beginning to understand."_

* * *

**-Somewhere in a Metropolis Mansion-**

Lex Luthor sat at his laptop cursing the name 'ForensicsFred.'

"'BRB' my A-S-S!"

* * *

Author's Note: Huzzah! One week down, one more to go! Hope you all liked it! Please read and review!

Next time: J'onn and Clark stop in to check on Wally. Wally has the mother of all hangovers and feels like the floor of a taxi.

"Noises are EVIL!"

Remember! DRINK RESPONSIBLY OR YOU'LL END UP LIKE WALLY!

"Gonna…burb!... hurl monkey chunks!!!"

More fun to come next time! I think it will be out near the end of next week. So stay tuned!

Oh and if anyone is bored, and likes Harry Potter. I have a one-shot story on my Author Page. I also have link to a GREAT AMV of Wally so check out my page. And if you're bored, check out my other story and please leave a review! Thanks All!


	12. Day 1, Week 2: Not Sick, but Not Well

Disclaimer: _**Munch Munch Munch Munch Munch Munch Munch Munch… **_

I don't own post-it notes if I did, I'd be as rich as Bruce!

Sorry for the wait guys. Mists is working on something very important in her life. I'll have a lot more time to write next week. So no worries next chapter should be out around Wednesday, ONTO THE FIC!

**

* * *

**

-Day 1, Week 2: Not Sick, but Not Well-

**-Bruce's POV-**

Bruce drove Dick home after he and Wally had passed out the previous night. He carried Dick up to his apartment and put him to bed. But not before leaving a post-it note on the man's face that said:

**You're Welcome.**

–**Batman **

**P.S. You owe me a new sofa. Enjoy the hangover.**

Early the next morning, Bruce sat down to read the newspaper at the kitchen table.

Alfred had just gotten back from restocking the fridge…_again, _when the doorbell rang.

"_Who could that be this early in the morning?"_

Since he had just finished making breakfast, Alfred washed his hands in the sink. He dried them on his apron and then hung it on the hook by the kitchen door.

Bruce listened as Alfred answered the door.

"Hello," said an overly cheerful voice that Bruce knew very well.

"I have an appointment to interview Bruce Wayne this morning. Is he in?"

"_Great, just what I need first thing in the morning, the Boy Scout."_

Bruce made a disgusted face.

"_I'm even calling him that now. Wally's been here too long."_

Alfred showed Clark and J'onn, who was disguised as Clark's camera man, into the kitchen.

"Hi Bruce," said Clark as he waved hello.

J'onn nodded his head in greeting as he transformed back into his usual form.

"J'onn. Clark. To what do I owe the honor of your visit?"

Clark and J'onn sat down at the kitchen table.

"Just checking up on Wally."

"Shouldn't you be at work right about now?"

Clark smirked, "Well technically I am."

To this Bruce raised an eyebrow, "How so?"

"My excuse at the door wasn't totally false you see. I'm here to interview you about the party you're having in two days."

"_Shit! I forgot all about the stupid thing."_

Bruce shrugged, "Nothing much to tell. Some of the richest, snobbiest, showboats in all of Gotham will be there. Overall, it's just another pretentious show that I must perform for the sake of appearances."

Clark laughed, "I take it that you don't want me to quote you on that."

Bruce quenched the man's laughter with a fairly intense glare.

This made Clark take an auditable gulp.

Alfred saved Clark from being 'visually skewered alive.'

"Can I get you gentlemen something to eat?"

J'onn spoke up at this point. "Actually, yes. You wouldn't happen to have any..Oreos would you?"

Clark made a disgusted face.

"Eww… J'onn it's 8 in the morning. Wouldn't you like some eggs or toast instead?"

Alfred simply complied with the Martian's request and brought out a full plate.

"No, the cookies will do just fine. Thank you, Alfred."

J'onn started to munch on the Oreos.

Clark just stared at him while Bruce continued to read his paper.

Then the light bulb went off in Clark's head.

"Are you doing this just to piss off Wally when he comes down here?"

The Martian's face stayed completely neutral as he answered,

"Of course not. That would be childish."

An amused snort could faintly be heard from behind the newspaper covering Bruce's face.

Both Clark and J'onn slowly turned to face each other. J'onn had actually stopped mid-nibble. The shock on both Clark's and J'onn's faces was very evident. Each clearly asking the other, 'Did he just laugh?'

Bruce chose that moment to put the paper down. He saw the look the two were giving one another.

Bruce's scowl came right back.

"What?" he asked annoyed.

Clark shook himself out of it. "N-nothing, never mind. So where _is_ Wally this morning anyway? I thought he'd be bouncing off the walls already."

"Well normally he _would be_, but since he and Dick, my ward, decided to 'get wasted' last night. I doubt the brat will be in very high spirits when he _does _eventually wake up."

"_Speak of the red haired devil, here he comes now."_

Wally wheeled himself into the kitchen looking half dead. He had dark circles under his eyes and was as pale as a ghost. He let out a large hacking cough as he paid the others no mind. He just headed straight for the fridge.

"Wally? _Jeeze…_You look like heck!"

"_Of course Clark wouldn't say, 'hell' no swearing for the Boy Scout. Damn it! I did it again!"_

Wally just grunted from behind the refrigerator door.

Clark and J'onn turned their accusing eyes on Bruce.

"Are you sure you didn't slip him something because he sent us those QuickTime files of you singing?" asked Clark chuckling a bit from the memory of finding it in his inbox. He must have watched it twelve times before Bruce found a way to delete it.

Bruce glared his response.

"He's telling the truth," said J'onn, "Apparently he witnessed Dick and Wally singing with a CD, while consuming mass amounts of alcohol.

A small smile then appeared on the Martian's face and shot any amount of Bruce's lingering good mood straight to hell.

"_I hate mind readers."_

"Did I give you permission to read my mind?" asked Bruce darkly.

Clark sighed, not knowing what the two were really on about.

"Come on Bruce, it's not like it's impossible that you could have done that."

Bruce wouldn't even dignify that with a response and got up to get some coffee.

Wally had returned to the table with some milk, a bowl, and a cereal box. He plopped the items down with nary a word. Then he folded his arms and put his head down on the table.

"So Wally," said Clark, "I heard you had a fun night."

A painful grunt was his only response.

J'onn continued to loudly munch on his Oreos.

Clark laughed, "I would have given anything to see that!"

Wally shifted his head and pulled out his right hand and gave Clark the finger.

"_Hey!_ Now that's uncalled for!" exclaimed Clark a little mortified.

"_Awww…did Wally offend the…NO! Not again!"_

"Actually Master Clark, I was able to record the whole event. I could give you a copy if you like," said Alfred as he finished cleaning up the kitchen.

This time, Wally was the one mortified as his pitiful, whiney groan could be heard by all.

He then proceeded to bang his head against the table a couple of times.

"_Payback is a beautiful thing."_

All the while, J'onn's munching had become a constant unwavering noise. And it was quickly driving Wally mad.

Wally's head slowly turned up so he could face J'onn.

_**Munch Munch Munch Munch Munch Munch Munch Munch… **_

"J'onn…"

"_Yes,"_ answered the Martian telepathically so not to interrupt his incessant munching.

_**Munch Munch Munch Munch Munch Munch Munch Munch… **_

Wally gave him a glare of Batman caliber.

"I hate you."

J'onn just shrugged with a small smile and continued eating.

Causing Wally to groan, "Now I know what your super-hearing must feel like Clark. Noises are EVIL! I feel like my head is going to explode!"

Wally tried to cover his ears to escape the repetitive mantra of his on-coming insanity.

Clark nearly spit out his coffee as he snorted, "Not really, Wally. I can turn off my super-hearing. I don't think you have that luxury."

His laugher afterwards was pure and musical.

It made Wally want to kill him too.

Instead Wally settled for using his super-speed to steal away J'onn's Oreos, so his nightmare would end.

J'onn, not too pleased with this development, sent Wally a mental image of a Norvarian, Huckleslorp.

Needless to say, the speedster was _**NOT**_ amused.

Wally went from pale, to green and wheeled out of the room at break-neck speed.

"Gonna hurl monkey chunks!!!" he screamed as he made his way to the bathroom. Sounds of Wally puking in the toilet could be heard from down the hall.

When Clark's laugher subsided, he sighed, "Well I guess he's doing okay, all things considered."

"Yes," said J'onn, "I think we should be leaving about now."

Clark checked his watch.

"Yeah, you're right."

J'onn morphed back into his disguise.

Clark got up and shook Bruce's hand.

"Half of the League will be away for the rest of the week, Bruce. J'onn and I have a big mission on Therale 3 and we need all the people we can get. Mr. Terrific is going to keep an eye on the Watchtower while we're gone."

J'onn got up to shake Bruce's hand as well.

"He is a very capable man. If anything arises, don't hesitate to contact him. Clark and I will be leaving at noon. We shall return in a week or so."

"Come on J'onn," said Clark looking at his watch, "I gotta 'write' up Bruce's party article before we leave."

Alfred showed the two men to the door.

"Tell Wally 'bye' for us too Bruce. And try not to kill each other before we get back. I'll lose the bet then!" said Clark with a laugh as he went out the door.

Bruce grumbled about 'childish behavior' and turned to go to the den and find a good book.

* * *

At around three o'clock, Bruce sat in the den and eyed his chess set. Wally was down in the cave working on his 'experiments.' Bruce was actually bored without his incessant chatter. He shrugged and got up to have a game of chess with himself.

About a half an hour in, he heard Wally say,

"Oooo! Chess, can I play?"

Bruce looked up at the speedster with a quizzical expression. The kid was looking a bit better then he had this morning. Though he still looked quite pale…

"Sure. Let's see what you got kid."

* * *

**-Two Hours Later-**

"_I can't believe this, not only is the game still going on, but he got my Queen!"_

It is said that in chess, the first one to take out the other's queen is like drawing first blood in a duel.

Wally just leaned back in his wheelchair with a satisfied smirk. He took Bruce's black queen and began to spin it like a top on his index finger.

"I believe that is point to me, Sir," said Wally in an overly pompous voice.

"The game's not over _yet_, brat."

Wally laughed at Bruce's new name for him as Bruce went back to concentrating on the board.

Bruce was focused on creating a fail proof strategy when heard Wally gasp and the chess piece he was spinning fall to the floor.

This startled Bruce. He quickly looked up at Wally. The speedster was sweating bullets and had had placed his hand behind his back.

Something was seriously wrong. Bruce had never seen him look so terrified.

"Wall-"

"Bathroom tim-" he said as he attempted to wheel away.

Bruce caught his arm before he could speed out of the room.

Wally began to breathe heavily.

"Bruce….._huff_… Please let … _huff_…go!"

Bruce's resolve didn't falter.

"Not until you tell me what the hell is going on!" he yelled and held the man's arm tighter.

"Bruce! PLEASE! You could-"

"Could wha-"

It was then that Wally's whole body began to shake. Bruce watched horrified as Wally went from pale, to transparent….

"_Oh my god…"_

"Bruce…_huff!_...Your molecules could…_HUFF!_…go too! NOW LET GO!" yelled Wally desperately trying to get away from Bruce.

Bruce loosened his grip, but he didn't dare let go.

"Wally is there anything I can do?"

The speeder panted like he couldn't breathe, his shaking had worsened as he began to flicker in and out.

Speaking was incredibly painful by Wally's tone.

"Get….Ray…._huff!_…Ray Palmer…he'll…"

Wally then bent over in pain and screamed in agony.

"_The Atom?! Never mind, later!"_

Bruce pulled out the League communicator the always keep in his pocket and call the Watchtower.

"Priority Override! User code: 001! Mr. Terrific, I need Ray Palmer sent to my coordinates NOW! I don't care if he's teaching a lecture. Beam him here IMMEDIATELY! Batman-OUT!"

"Wally, he'll be here in a moment. Hang on."

Wally couldn't hear Bruce's words. His breathing had become far too rapid. He hung on for as long as he could. Then his eyes rolled back and he passed out.

* * *

Author's Note:

"…"

_Mists stares at her audience, then runs away and hides under a rock!!!_

Please read and Review!


	13. Day 2, Week 2: Revelations

Disclaimer: _Mists comes out from under her rock._

Awww! Thank you all for your numerous threats! They warm my evil soul. BWHAHA! XD

Anyway, one of my big reveals has happened! Yup, Wally's friend is Dr. Ray Palmer.

Why Ray you ask? Simple.

_Mists pulls out her Nov. 2002, Issue 11 of Justice League Adventures. _

Not many people know this, but yes, there is a comic series based on the JL and JLU Animated Series. In the issue I just stated, we see a Wally and Ray team up.

In THIS comic it is stated that RAY created Wally's 'Cosmic Treadmill.' Flash fans will know what that is, but to the rest of you, it's a time machine/treadmill that the Flash runs on. You actually see it in Wally's apartment in 'Flash and Substance' episode. For Ray to make it, he'd have to be pretty familiar with how Wally's powers work. More on that in the fic.

Now back to the comic, it's in my opinion, one of the best they did. It's a wonderful story about, life, death, and dealing with it all. Its message is look to the future, not the past, or you'll destroy yourself. Ray and Wally help an ex-villain realize this. It's wonderful, if you can find it, it's worth a read.

The repartee between Wally and Ray worked amazingly well. It read like they had been friends for a long time. The best line is when they are talking about the treadmill. Ray gives a long winded explanation about how it works. This is Wally's response:

"Pretty big words there, Atom, for something that's powered like Fred Flintstone's car."

"Wally, don't embarrass me in front of the future men."

_Page 6, Nov. 2002, Issue 11 of Justice League Adventures._

I just HAD to put that in there! I love it _**so **_much. Okay now enough, author info, to the fic!

* * *

**-Day 2, Week 2: Revelations-**

**-Bruce's POV-**

It had taken Ray and Bruce four hours to stabilize Wally's molecules. Ray, whom Bruce could only assume was a long time friend of Wally's, knew what the problem was before he had even gotten there. When he was transported to the mansion, he had a stabilizing device already in hand. The 54 year old man looked disheveled and completely out of breath.

"_Please tell me his molecular structure didn't dissipate!"_

_Ray looked at Bruce holding the arm of the flickering man._

"_Damn it! I warned him that this could happen if he wasn't able to run! Let's get him to a bed. I'll be able to scan him better if he's lying down…"_

It turned out that Wally and Ray had been working to rectify this progressing problem for sometime now. From what Dr. Palmer told him, if Wally was able to reach an equilibrium, he would be fine. But if he ran too much or too little, his molecular structure would become unstable. Energy from the 'Speedforce' constantly flowed through Wally's body. Running too much or too little would cause this energy to build up in his molecules, making his body unstable.

"_In essence, his body changes its molecular frequency every time he taps into his 'speed'_ _power. It has been getting to the point where he doesn't even 'need' to tap anymore. That's what had us so worried. If this 'Speedforce' were to build in his body, he could permanently shift to another frequency, or in other words……to another state."_

"_So… he would simply disappear and cease to exist?"_

"_That…or something __**FAR**__ worse."_

Ray's words echoed in Bruce's mind as he, Ray, and Alfred keep their all night vigil over Wally's bedside.

"_He's not out of the woods yet Bruce," said Ray looking grave._

Dr. Palmer used a stabilization ray that both he and Wally had been working on. It was set to Ray's molecular frequency, because of 'The Atom's' uncanny ability to retain his basic atomic structure while reducing his overall mass and density. If anything could stabilize Wally, 'The Atom's' frequency would. Ray said that once Wally joked that if Ray didn't send his molecules across the universe doing that, then he should be fine too.

"_We'll know by tomorrow afternoon. No promises though."_

* * *

It was 11 o'clock in the morning, when Alfred sent both Dr. Palmer and Bruce to the kitchen for a coffee break. Ray looked beat, while Bruce on the other hand looked pretty normal. He was use to long nights. Though he had to admit, this had been quite the longest one that he had had in a good while.

Ray sat at the table and rubbed his eyes. He then let loose a large yawn.

Bruce, taking pity on the man, poured him a cup of coffee as well.

He placed it next to the tired professor.

"Oh," said Ray wearily, "Thank you, Bruce."

He accepted the cup gratefully, but opted instead to hold the drink and allow its warmth to envelope his hands. He stared blankly at the dark liquid, as if asking it to warm the cold chill in his heart.

"So…Wally told you that he was staying here?" Bruce asked with a dark edge to the question. For all he thought and said about the kid, he did trust Wally. Impeccably so in fact, especially after the whole "Justice Lords" event. But apparently, Ray knew Flash was staying with Batman. Bruce didn't like that…it made him wonder about what else Ray knew.

"If what you're asking is if he told me you were Bruce Wayne, then the answer is no. All he told me was that he was staying with 'Bats.' Then he whined about how he couldn't stay with me in my little town house, 3rd floor, studio apartment because of the little issues of 'stairs' and 'room to move.'"

"_That definitely sounds like a Wally statement."_

Bruce was glad that his trust hadn't been misplaced. Though his identity was compromised, Dr. Palmer was a man to be respected and trusted. He didn't have to fear exposure from him. Ray understood the ramifications far too well.

The conversation drifted back to silence again.

Bruce watched Ray sit there staring into his coffee cup for sometime. He had no idea what to say, or even how to start up the conversation again. But Bruce needed solid answers, and it seemed that the tired man sitting in front of him was the only one who had them.

"Ahem!" he coughed.

Ray didn't even look up, very much lost in his own thoughts.

"_Sigh."_

"Ray."

This time the man raised his head.

"Yes?"

"I need some answers," said Bruce as he fitted the man with an apprising gaze.

"And you deserve them Bruce," replied Ray as he took a sip of his now cold coffee, "I'm just…not sure I should be the one to give them."

"Dr. Palmer, we- 'the League' had _no_ prior knowledge that anything was ever wrong with Wally. If this had happened on a mission-"

"He'd be dead or worse. Yes, I know that."

Bruce's gaze turned to a glare.

"But that's not the only thing he has been keeping from us, is it?" he questioned rhetorically.

Ray kept silent and showed no sign of breaking.

Bruce pressed on.

"The records he gave to the League said he was a police mechanic. When I did another background search I found that wasn't his only job. It turns out he was mechanic a full five years ago, now he works at the Central City Police Department as a Forensic Scientist. His personal records are locked up so tight that even _I _can't crack into them."

"My lab assistant, Katie, is an excellent hacker and encryptionist. Wally was deathly afraid that some super-villain would discover his identity and expose him like they did me."

"Well that I can understand, but why keep this information from the Original Seven? We are the only ones privy to heroes' secret identities."

Some in the League knew his name was Bruce, but nothing more. He felt pretty safe with the facade that he had built up over the years. Even if the thought would cross anyone's mind that Bruce Wayne was Batman, they'd immediately dismiss it as ridiculous.

"_Is that why Wally hides his intelligence? So that Wally West and the Flash can be miles apart?"_

The thought that he and Wally had something in common was somewhat…_unsettling_ to Bruce.

"But that's not the only reason…." continued Ray uncomfortably.

"_What now?"_

"Okay, go on…"

Ray sighed, "…You have to understand…this is Wally's life. He should be the one to tell you about it."

"But he won't," stated Bruce.

He had learned quite a bit about the _real _Wally from his stay at Wayne Manor. Wally was always one that others could confide in, to laugh with, to lean on. But when it came to his own problems, he kept them to himself. It was as if he thought he'd be a burden on others if he told them his problems.

Ray closed his eyes and thought long and hard about the truth in Bruce's words.

"Very well. But you must swear to me that you won't tell another living soul. Wally needs someone in the League to know…other than J'onn that is. He…can't help Wally…the way that, maybe you could."

"Dr. Palmer, you _do_ understand that I'm not one to talk to others about dealing with emotions, _right?_"

Ray let out a tired laugh, "Yes, well…what I meant is that…compared to the others…I think you'd understand it best. And maybe…the two of you can help each other."

Bruce's eyes nervously moved from side to side. For the first, in a long time, he was utterly confused.

Ray shook his head, took a deep breath and began.

"Wally has had one of the hardest lives of anyone I have even known. His mother died giving birth to him. It was a fact that his father harbored great ill towards him for that."

"Why?" asked Bruce.

"_This was not what I was expecting at all…"_

Ray shrugged, "He needed someone to blame, I have no idea. He left Wally with his wife's mother and took off. He never wrote or called, merely paid enough child support to keep himself out of jail."

Bruce felt his hands tighten into fists. He didn't like people who hurt children. He had met and dealt with quite the verity of scum in his lifetime. But he always felt the ones who hurt or neglected kids were the worst of the worst.

"Anyway his Gran, that's the one that he always refers to as 'Granny Flash' taught him about people and about life. He loved her with all his heart and soul. Wally said that when she smiled, she lit up the whole room. She was his immovable moral compass, and she taught him how to love everything in life, from the rain to the sun."

"She sounds like an incredible person," said Bruce.

"_She sounds a bit like my mother…"_

Bruce then coughed the fleeting emotion away.

"She was," said Ray with a sense of finality to it.

"So she-"

"Yes. When Wally was seven years old, he came home from school…and she just…wouldn't wake up." Ray's voice became gruff with sadness as he removed his glasses.

"At the funeral, Wally's father made an appearance. Though Wally also had an aunt and uncle on his mother's side, they couldn't afford to adopt him. His Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris fought tooth and nail to get custody of him, but the fact was that he had a living parent. The court gave him to his father."

Ray blew out a hard breath.

"Wally won't talk about the year he spent with his father. I met the man once and let me tell you, I've met super-villains with more warmth and compassion than that man. It's amazing to me how the kid kept his love of life."

Bruce noticed something amiss in Ray's telling.

"Wait…you just said only a year…did Wally go to live with his aunt and uncle then?"

"Oh no. No _that_ man, he did the worst thing possible, he told the boy they were going out to eat. Wally happily fell asleep in the car, thinking that his father had decided to finally show him an ounce of kindness, and he woke up in the Central City Orphanage."

Bruce felt his ire rise to its total height.

"_Note to self: Find this guy and dangle him off a bridge."_

"What about his aunt and uncle? Couldn't they adopt him now?"

"No, they didn't have enough money. Wally's Uncle Barry had just been diagnosed with cancer you see. The therapy sapped every single penny they had."

Bruce mentally sighed, "S_o that's why he's working so hard to find a cure. He knows what it did to his uncle._

"They came every Sunday to see him. Wally spent the rest of his childhood there. He watched as kids got adopted as new ones came in. But he was always there, no one outside of the orphanage adopted him."

"_Oh for the love of-Did anything go right in his childhood? He's life almost sounds like…"_

Bruce shook that thought away. But then a new one took its place.

"_Maybe that's who 'Flash' is. The child he was never allowed to be. The freedom and the carefree joy that he was always denied."_

Ray cleared his throat and appeared to perk up a bit.

"Now I said outside the orphanage remember. That's because the woman who ran the facility adopted Wally as her own. Her name is Susan Thyme. He even calls her 'Mom.' Though she didn't have enough money to do it legally, she did with her heart. Since Wally left, she has retired and moved to Florida. Wally runs down to see her once every month. Her granddaughter, Lauren now runs the orphanage in her place."

Bruce sighed and rubbed his face.

"_At least the kid had someone."_

"Okay… so up until his eighteenth birthday, he was a ward of the state. Then what happened?"

"Well all through high school and college, Wally worked as a mechanic for the Central City Police Station until he had to quit so he could complete his two required internships. His love of science and helping people never waned. But he wasn't sure which field of science he wanted to get into. At the time he was interested in Nanotech…."

"Wait a second," said Bruce unable to take this latest bit of information in, "Are you trying to tell me that Wally interned with you at Ivy University in Boston?"

Dr. Palmer laughed lightly at the memory,"Oh yes, he certainly did. Let me tell you, I had to check that they sent the right person over at first. He sounds a _lot_ different on paper!"

"I noticed," said Bruce dryly remembering Wally's lab notes.

"Anyway, Katie and I became fast friends with him. He breaks down every defense you have that kid. His natural kindness and loving nature just rubs off on you. You don't even realize it until you start laughing or smiling in a way that you never thought you could again."

Bruce stayed silent as his jaw tighten slightly.

He kept his expression very neutral. But for those who truly knew Bruce Wayne, his eyes said it all.

"Just him being there, he helped me come to terms with my divorce," said Ray going on, "I've never known anyone who so generally cared for others with no other reason then it was the right thing to do."

Ray took a long sip of his coffee.

"He even invited me to his graduation. There I met his Uncle Barry and Aunt Iris. Barry's in remission now and doing much better. I've never seen two people so proud, and rightfully so. Barry and I have been friends ever since and communicate via email, trading information and Wally stories."

"So…Wally graduated and became a Forensic Scientist for the Central City Police Department, I take it," said Bruce as he began to see where the story was leading to in the end.

"Yes, and he was there for a full year, he couldn't have been happier. For the first time ever, he had a job that he loved. He had enough money to not only live, but buy a few extra luxuries as well. That was until lightning struck."

"Literally I take it…" said Bruce with a cynical edge.

"Wally was working late one stormy night," Ray sighed, "He was putting the chemicals away on the shelf as he cleaned up for the night. Then _**crack!**_ lightning struck him and the chemicals.

He was rushed to the hospital. All of us were there, even Susan. We were all terrified. People usually don't live after being struck by lightning."

"Understandably so."

Ray smirked a bit.

"But that kid has more lives then anyone I know. Other than having all the hair fried off his head and some minor burns, he was fine. I can't even express how relieved we all were. Then suddenly, his hair grew back at an alarming rate. Next, he also noticed that he could move faster then normal. After he pushed a man out of the way of a speeding car with only a second to spare, he came to me to do some tests and the rest is history."

"He became, _The Flash._"

Bruce then sat back in silence as he took all this new information in.

"Master Bruce, Dr. Palmer," called Alfred as he came into the room, "I believe Master Wally is waking up."

The two men shook themselves awake and hurried to the guest bedroom.

* * *

**-Wally's POV-**

"_Awww..pillow...nice! Sleep is good…"_

"Wally?" questioned a distant voice.

"_You are not sleep. Go away…wait a sec…that sounded like Ray…"_

"Kid, I swear if you're just napping, I'm going to kill you."

"_Bats?!...What the-"_

Then he remembered passing out at the chess table….in front of Bruce.

"_CRAPP! He's gonna kill me!! Maybe I can…DAMN! Can't run, legs still broke!! Um…um..window? No then I'd die…or WORSE break my legs AGAIN! Um…!"_

"Wally, Bruce, Alfred and I know you're just stalling. Now wake the hell up!"

Wally sat up and stretched his arms in a marvelous mock yawn.

"YAWWNN! Well that was a…good…"

He was getting identical Bat-glares from all three.

"_Oh man, I am in __**trouble**__…"_

"Yeah…um…sorry?" he squeaked out weakly and shrugged.

"Wally you nearly gave us all heart attacks, I hope you know," sighed Ray, clearly exasperated.

"_And Ray's here. It must have been __**BAD**__."_

"Uh…Hi Ray. Yeah well… I was monitoring it! I thought it was enough!"

"That's not the point! You should have at least given Bruce some warning before you came here!"

Wally began to fiddle with his hands.

"I didn't want to-"

"What? Worry him? Come on Wally, I thought by now you'd know better than that," said Ray with a lot less edge to his voice.

The professor walked over and sat down on the edge of Wally's bed. He placed his hands on the kid's shoulders and looked him in the eye.

"It's a two way street, kid. When you care about others they tend to care about you right back."

Wally's eyes brightened a little as he quickly looked away from Ray.

"Yeah, I know," he said hoarsely, "But Ray, I swear I thought everything was under control."

"You assumed Wally. Never assume. That's how mistakes are made."

Wally laughed a little as he heard his own words being thrown right back at him.

"Yes, Sir!" he said and gave the man a cocky salute.

"Now let's get you checked out here. I want to make sure you don't go to pieces again. One near heart attack in a lifetime is enough for me."

* * *

It took until 7 o'clock in the evening for Ray to complete all of his tests.

"Well it seems that the pent up energy in your system has dispersed. But I'm still worried that it could happen again Wally, the longer you're in those casts the more you'll be at risk."

Wally looked a little sheepish as Ray gave him a pointed look and continued.

"According to my scans, it seems that your temporary distortion didn't drastically alter the position of your casts. I highly suggest that you go to the hospital and get them removed as soon as possible. My scans indicate that your bones are almost completely healed."

Wally's face lit up like a Christmas tree.

"That's great! I can get them off tomorrow and be-"

"Let him finish Wally," said Bruce from the doorway of the room.

He had been standing at a distance from Wally ever since he woke up.

"_Uh oh. I think I might have spooked the Bat. He's looking at me all weird…like not glaring at all. I hope he's not still mad at me."_

"As I was saying, the 'bone' is healed Wally, but you're muscle tissue has become very deteriorated. Even after you're casts are removed, it will still take you a week or so to get back to normal speed."

Wally's face fell immediately.

"So you mean that even though I can get the casts off in a day or two, I still won't be able to run?"

"Sorry Wally, but there is an 'up' side."

"I would very much like to hear this 'up' side of which you speak," said Wally as he slumped down in his chair, once again depressed.

"Bruce has agreed to let you stay here and train with him to help get you back to full strength," Ray said with a smile.

Wally turned to face Bruce. He watched as an evil grin slowly moved across Bruce's face. Dick had told Wally about his 'training' under the Bat.

* * *

**-Flashback-**

"_Whatever you do, NEVER train with Bruce, especially if he's mad at you. You'll be dead within the hour."_

* * *

Wally gulped.

"_That is SO __**not **__an UPSIDE!"_

"Okay….so at _least _tell me when I can get out of these casts. I miss being able to bathe myself, thank you very much."

"Tomorrow if you like…"

"_Well at least that's-"_

"Sorry to interrupt gentlemen, but tomorrow would be impossible. Your party is tomorrow Sir and I'm afraid it is far too late to cancel it." said Alfred as he walked into the room.

"_BUTT MUNCHIES! Okay that's it! Some celestial force has it out for me. End of story!"_

Bruce grunted in agreement and looked to Wally.

"We'll get them off the day after, sorry kid."

"_Bruce is being semi- civil to me…no good can come from this."_

Just then Wally's stomach interrupted and further conversation on the subject was halted.

Alfred coughed to gain everyone's attention.

"As I came in here to tell you all, dinner is served."

"_Well…I've never been one to say no to food or a party. Hopefully things will look up tomorrow."_

Wally turned to exit the door. He wheeled by Bruce. He could feel the man staring at him in a way that he hadn't before.

"What?" asked Wally a little harshly.

He didn't like being analyzed like a strange specimen.

Bruce just shrugged and walked out of the room.

"_What the heck was that about?"_

Slowly, Wally followed pondering Bruce's change in attitude. He left the room bent on filling his tummy and figuring out what had crawled up Bruce's ass this time.

* * *

Author's Notes: Okay people there you have it! And see it was LONG. My version of Wally's entire back story! And before anyone asks, once again Wally is the one and only Flash. Barry is just his loving uncle. That's all. I think I covered all continuity bases so YEAH, sweetness!

Next Time: Party at the Manor! A funny chapter comes once again, with Paris Hilton wantabees, annoyingly drunken party boys, and the appearance of Babs! Dick stops by too! This next chapter will be a week or so people, lot of life stuff going on.

Please read and review! More awesomeness to come so stay tuned!

_Mists dresses up like and angry villager and hides in Yueh's pitch fork mob._

"Let's find that woman and get some pie!" XD


	14. Day 3, Week 2: Party Time

Disclaimer: Hi everyone! Here comes another funny chapter. Man I seem to switch gears a lot, don't I? Up, down, up, down like a roller coaster! Those are my favorite kind of stories, the ones that surprise you…

Sorry for the long wait, but Mists needed a break. I've decided to slow down on the updating because from here on out because the chapters are going to be longer and far more complex. Oh and I'm going to make some small changes to some of the sentence structures of chapter 13. None of my plot will change, but Sea pointed out that Ray's first speech was a bit confusing, so I've decided to clean that part up a bit.

Now onto Bruce's party!

* * *

**-Day 3, Week 2: Party Time!-**

**-Wally's POV-**

"For the last time, I'M NOT GOING TO PULL A CLARK!!" yelled Wally at both Ray and Alfred.

Ray sighed, "Wally, look, it's just as a precaution. You want to make sure your identity _stays_ secret, don't you?"

Wally smacked his forehead.

"But Rayyy," he whined, "I do wear a mask you know, it's not like Clark, who doesn't, he _needs_ to wear the glasses."

"Well, that's true, but still it's better safe than sorry. My story about you being my assistant and working on a project with Bruce will only go so far…."

The four men were getting ready for Bruce's party that night. Ray had agreed to stay in order to give Wally an excuse for being there. Ray and Alfred decided that since Wally would already stand out a lot in a wheelchair, he should look as inconspicuous as possible.

Hence, their attempt to make him look like Ray's nerdy lackey, by having him wear-_shivers-_ glasses.

Alfred and Ray had been arguing in circles with Wally for nearly an hour now. Bruce was sitting on the couch silently listening to the pointless conversation while he pretended to read a book. Though it seemed that Bruce had finally reached his limit on hearing the mindless babble.

Out of the blue, Bruce said, "Wally has a point. Truthfully, I don't get how they work for Clark either."

The three just slowly turned their heads toward Bruce.

"_Did…did he just AGREE with me? The end must be nigh." _

Wally covered up his surprise quickly and snorted, "Yeah, I know. You'd think the fact, that he's 6' 11' with a chest like a brick wall would tip people off, especially Lois."

Bruce gave a lighthearted snort in return, "Don't I know it."

Wally looked at him puzzled.

"_What the heck's going on with him? He seems…different…"_

Then a thought dawned on Wally, "Wait a sec…didn't you use to date Lois?"

He remembered reading it in a tabloid once.

A smirk grew on Bruce's face, "You really are smarter then you look, aren't you kid?"

"_Hey..._"

"Yes…we did indeed date…" Bruce had an odd look to his face…like he was fighting back something with all he had.

"_Could he…no WAY…is that… a laugh?" _

A small smile started to grow on Wally's face. For all their differences, Wally did generally like Bats. Wally was glad to see that for once, he was letting himself enjoy a moment instead of curse it.

"In fact," continued Bruce, "she figured out I was Batman."

Bruce kept his eyes firmly planted on his book as he turned to the next page.

Wally's jaw dropped to the floor.

"WHAT?!!" he screamed.

The odd look on Bruce's face came back.

"_Oh yeah, he is SO holding back a laugh."_

"You mean to tell me…that Lois…" Wally giggled, "She-Shhhe could figure out that YOU were Batman...But..HAHAHA! But she can't!! She can't-"

Wally dissolved into a fit of laughter.

Bruce just nodded his head sagely and continued to read.

Ray looked on perplexed. He turned to Alfred.

"Do you have any idea what they're going on about?"

"I haven't the foggiest, Sir."

Wally finally forced out, "Are you _SURE_ she doesn't know? Because that is just sad, I mean, he doesn't even ACT differently. It's all just the hair and the glasses!"

"Actually, I think she _does_. My guess is that she's just waiting for him to get up enough courage to actually _tell_ her."

"Oh man that's RICH. I can see it now, he says 'I'm Superman.' While she picks at her nails and says 'About damn time, Smallville.' The LOOK that would be on his FACE!"

Wally started to pound on the armrest of the wheelchair as he cry laughed at the beauty.

Bruce held his hand tightly against his mouth, as he left the room in a hurry.

Ray and Alfred were left standing there utterly confused.

"I give up, those boys are just too weird."

"Indeed."

* * *

**-Alfred's POV-**

Preparing for these monthly parties was beginning to take its toll on the old butler. Neither he nor Master Bruce ever seemed to have 'fun' at them. Bruce always wore his plastic smile, and by most, Alfred was treated like a lesser being with nary a 'thank you' given in return for his services.

"_But I have a feeling that this time will be different… "_

Alfred smiled as he remembered the laughter Bruce tried to hide that morning.

"_That boy is actually wearing him down I think."_

Alfred finished dusting in the Ballroom and headed to the foyer.

As he passed by the library, he caught sight of the portrait that hung there. He stared at it for a moment, and then entered the room.

He looked at the happy family in the portrait, oh how he missed those times. Master Bruce was so happy back then.

Alfred felt tears building in his eyes as he remembered the young boy, so happy and filled with life. Then he watched as Bruce turned all his emotions inward, trying to shut out everyone and everything until he could feel neither pain nor happiness. Alfred could do nothing to crack the emptiness the boy had surrendered his soul too.

He walked forward and began to dust the frame of the painting.

"Well," he whispered, "it seems that your son has finally found someone who can crack that wall he's built around himself."

Alfred finished his work there and headed to the bookcases.

"He's made his own little family you know…"

He thought of Tim, Dick, and Barbara. They had tried so hard to break down those iron walls. But no matter how much they gave, they always found themselves pushed away. Eventually they just gave up trying and accepted that Bruce was never going to change.

Then the League happened. Working on a team, with people Bruce hadn't trained. People who were heroes in their own rights. People who didn't just take whatever he said and moved on. They stood up to him and held their ground. And he respected them for it, ….all but Wally that is.

Alfred smiled at the irony. Little by little, Bruce's respect for the 'brat' had grown over the years. And now here was Bruce, actually laughing at one of the boy's jokes.

"I think your boy has finally found a true and caring friend, who can't be pushed away. I don't know what will happen when the last wall falls, but all we can to is hope for the best……..That he'll find himself again…"

With that, Alfred left to check the front door. The caterers and other waiters would be arriving at anytime now. He left the room with a silent prayer in his heart that in the end it would turn out all right.

* * *

**-Wally's POV-**

"I look like a nerd," groused Wally as he put on the black wire rimmed glasses.

He had finally relented and agreed to wear the stupid things just to shut Ray up.

"Wally, you listen to Weird Al, own action figures, and play internet chess, face it, you ARE a nerd," said Ray as he adjusted his tie in the mirror.

Wally stuck his tongue out at him. He turned back to the mirror and checked himself out. His black suit covered up the casts pretty well. He had on a white button up top with the first few buttons undone with no tie. He hated ties. They were number one on his list of 'formal' things that he despised.

Then Wally tried to tame his unruly crop of red hair.

"_Why does my hair always look like a windstorm hit it? Oh yeah…the running…well looks like I'm doomed for life."_

"Gentlemen, Master Bruce has asked me to inform you both that most of the guests have arrived and you both can join the party whenever you wish."

"Thanks, Al," said Wally as he gave him a salute and wheeled out the door.

Alfred gave him a look, but said nothing.

"_Ladies and gentlemen, I think we have found a winner. 'Al' it is! Now remember, be confident, but not cocky. It's 'science' mode time. And if anyone asks, you broke you legs in a lab experiment gone wrong…hehehe…and don't call Bruce, 'Bats.'"_

* * *

The sheer mass of people was staggering. All of them were dressed to the nines, tails and all. The Ballroom shimmered, bathed in golden candlelight. The crowd of people muttered to each other in nonsensical patterns. Catty, shrill laughter mixed with genuine comical tones.

Wally wheeled around the place feeling quite lost. He had started out by Ray's side, talking to a physicist. But when they went _way_ too far into a discussion about quantum mechanics, he left in search of other, less headache inducing company.

"Hey, Red," called out a voice, "You look like you're lost."

Wally instinctively turned to the voice.

He saw a woman with violet eyes and long black hair eye him from across the room.

She sauntered toward him with a sly smile, while discreetly trying to hide her notepad from view.

"_Oh boy, I'd know that woman anywhere…"_

Wally cleared his throat and pulled out his most 'intellectual' dialect for the meeting.

"Ah, you are the infamous, Lois Lane, I presume," he said as he held out his hand.

Lois narrowed her eyes at him, apparently pissed at being recognized already.

"Hmm…you're quite the sharp one. And just how do you know what I look like?" she question as she slowly shook his hand.

"_Uh oh…"_

"I- never forget a face…"

"Really…" she said unconvinced, "So, you look about as out of place as I do. How do you know, Brucie Boy anyway?" She asked with a sly smile.

"_Hehehe! Brucie Boy!"_

"Uh-"

Suddenly, he felt a hand lightly touch his shoulder.

"He's a friend of an associate of mine, Dr. Ray Palmer. You're looking lovely as usual, Lois," said Bruce as he snatched up her hand and gave it a small kiss.

"Watch it, _playboy_ or you're going home in a body-bag."

Bruce flashed her, his best billionaire smile.

"Forgive me Miss Lane, but I doubt that very highly. So to whom do I own the honor of your visit here tonight?"

Lois blew a piece of her hair away from her face and reached for her notepad to scribble on.

"That would be Smallville's doing. He's on vacation _again_ and Perry just let him! Chauvinist pigs. Oh well, more action for me to cover. If he wants to drop the ball, then fine. I'll beat that 'little up start' if it's the last thing I do."

Both Wally and Bruce had strange looks on their faces but Lois failed to notice.

"Anyway, I'm going to stakeout Sarah Flairon's table. If I can find any juicy stories, I'll find them there."

Lois put away her notepad and turned to leave. Bruce and Wally had just begun to let their guard down when she turned back to them and said,

"Catch you later, Red….Oh and nice casts…" she added with a wink and walked away.

Wally looked questioningly at Bruce.

"You don't think-"

"I have no idea. I've never been able to read that woman."

The two fell silent and began to watch the party around them.

A loud crash to they're right, drew the attention of the rest of the room.

"OHHH MY! Swilly _meee_. JEEVES! I have seen to goine and dropped myyy _vine_!"

Wally heard Bruce let loose a painful groan, "I thought that _ass_ was in Tahiti this week."

"Who the heck's that drunkard?"

"That is the _great_ Rory Talhoon. The son of Gotham's most corrupted judge."

As they spoke, Alfred appeared on the scene to clean up the glass. Rory, rocked as he tried to stand still watching over Alfred's shoulder. Somehow, the man had gotten his hands on another bottle of wine. He drank straight from it as watched with two scantily clad women supporting the louse on either side.

"You invited this man to your party!?" exclaimed Wally.

"No," said Bruce firmly, "He just showed up. He always shows up. And I can't kick him out, because then he'll tell his 'Daddy' and then I'll end up in court. I've been trying to take his father down for years, through _all _my channels- "

"_I guess that means as both Batman and Bruce Wayne."_

"The old man knows it too. He won't need a good reason. He'll throw me in jail in a heartbeat."

Wally looked sadly at Bruce as he saw his fists tighten. Rory had begun to jeer at Alfred on the floor as he cleaned up the wine.

"Ahhh…JEEVES…snapple it _uppied _a bit! I don't have all _night_ and my _VINE_ has gone warm!" several people shrilly laughed at Alfred's expense. The man's 'hussies' on either side tried to halt Alfred's efforts by standing in the way. Others just cringed, hoping the drunken man would leave well enough alone.

"_So THAT'S why they hate the word JEEVES_."

The two men looked at Rory with identical glares of blinding fury.

"Bruce," said Wally in a grim voice.

"Yes," he answered in a similar tone.

"Can I accidentally spill a whole bottle of sherry on him?"

"Already asked Alfred, he said that then he'd have to clean it up."

"Pity."

"Indeed."

Both men had the last straw, when Rory gave Alfred a sharp kick to the side with a nasty laugh. Bruce and Wally stormed toward the man with immense PAIN in mind when a voice yelled, "ENOUGH!"

Everyone turned to a white haired man in a trench coat. He stormed up to the drunken man and forcefully wrenched his arm behind his back.

"You, sir, are under arrest for assault!" said Police Commissioner Gordon as he pulled the handcuffs out from his pocket.

"GAHH! WHo da Iall suz! MY FATTER!"

"I don't give a DAMN who your father is! I'm taking you in _RIGHT_ now!"

"Awww! But Sarge! We just got here…." said Harvey with ten shrimps stuck in his mouth.

"I don't care. Take him to the car, I'll be there in a minute," said Gordon. Harvey mumbled as he shoved Rory through the door, "You have the rights to remain silent, I suggest yous take it."

Commissioner Gordon walked up to Bruce and Wally.

"Sorry, I can't stay old friend, but thank you for inviting us." He shook Bruce's hand proudly.

"No, thank you. You're taking quite a risk there…"

"I know Bruce, but I'm not too worried with all the witness here. Those reporters will have a field day with him too. Well I'd better be off, Barbara should be around here somewhere. Tell her I had to take off, okay?"

"I will. Thank you again."

Gordon laughed, "No problem," and walked out the front door.

Wally let out the breath he didn't even know he'd been holding.

"Well… I'll say this Bruce, your parties are far from boring!"

Bruce grabbed the bridge of his nose and shook his head.

"Man! I come late and what happens? I miss all the action!"

Wally and Bruce turned toward the familiar voice.

"Hey Bruce!" called Dick Grayson as he approached with a beautiful red haired woman on his arm.

"Hey! Dick! How's it going?" asked Wally as he wheeled over to his friend.

Dick did a double take at Wally and dissolved into a fit of laughter.

"HAHAHA! Wally! What is up with those glasses? You look like a geek!"

Wally scowled and haughtily pushed the specs back up the bridge of his nose.

"I prefer the term 'nerd' thank you very much. And I'll have you know that they are _**not**_ my doing!"

"I sure hope not!" choked out Dick between his laughs.

"I don't know, he looks pretty cute in them to me," said the red haired woman coyly.

This stopped Dick's laughter cold and made Wally sit up in his chair, wiggling his eyebrows in what he perceived as a 'sexy' manner.

"Well hello there pretty lady, with incredible taste, what's your name?"

Wally took the young woman's hand and kissed it gently.

"Barbara, Barbara Gordon. I'm the Police Commissioner's daughter." She winked flirty as Dick fumed.

"_And if I remember correctly…Batgirl too."_

"Okay! That's enough 'fun' from you two. Wally back away from my girlfriend, NOW!"

Wally laughed as Dick bodily put himself between the two.

"So this is the infamous 'Babs' eh? I like her, Dick…" said Wally slyly as Barbara played along by batting her eyes at him.

"You didn't say… how…_'spicy hot'_ he was Dick. I think I'll like getting to know him."

Dick shifted looking from one to the other. At this point, they both were trying their hardest not to laugh.

"All right…" said Dick exasperated, "Just let it out before you both blow a gasket!"

The two burst out in joyful abandonment.

"Oh Dick! It's just so much fun to mess with you!" said Barbara with her strong hearty laugh.

"Yes…my distress is _so_ amusing…" answered Dick in sarcastic tone and turned his back on the two.

This just started the laughter up again. Except this time, another voice had joined the chorus. Barbara and Wally froze and slowly turned to the new voice. Bruce turned away quickly and coughed, hoping to cover it up. But Babs and Wally had heard it. It might have been one of Bruce's fake ones...but it certainly didn't sound that way. Dick was still turned around and had missed the whole event.

As Wally and Babs recollected themselves, Nora Karen, the heiress to the Spray-on Deodorant Enterprise came up behind Bruce and covered his eyes.

"Guess who, Brucie Boy…" she whispered in Bruce's ear and gave it a lick.

"_Ewww! Bruce get away from that thing, you don't know where it's been!"_

Bruce's shiver of disgust was hard to miss, at least to everyone but the clueless heiress.

"Ahhh…Nora…how, _good_ of you to come."

"Oh Brucie! You're so _modest_!" she cackled and gave him a 'playful' shove.

The trio just looked at each other wanting to puke.

"Yes…well-"

"OH! BRUCIE!" she exclaimed over-dramatically with her hand poised over her mouth in shock, "I just remember!!" she squealed in shallow delight.

"_I think my eardrum popped…"_

Bruce humored her as she jumped up and down in her diamond studded heals, tugging on his arm.

"And what might that be?" asked Bruce with a twitch starting in his right eye.

"I'm starting a line of _lingerie_!! And I want YOU to be in on the _ground floor_…" she said in a VERY creepy way as she felt up Bruce's muscles through his tux.

"Now Nora, you know I'm not-"

She placed her finger to his mouth to silence him.

"Now, now _Brucie_! Let's talk more about this…_in private_…" she said seductively as she dragged Bruce away into the crowd.

This left Babs, Dick, and Wally alone as they started to twitch from the wrongness of what they had just witnessed.

Wally was the first to regain his composer.

"Does anyone have a barf bag?"

Dick and Babs shook their heads no.

Babs finally snapped out of it too.

"Well….let's go see if we can find Alfred. He might need help cleaning up."

Wally nodded his head as he and Babs dragged a still frozen Dick Grayson towards the kitchen.

* * *

**-Bruce's POV-**

It had taken Bruce a good hour and a half to free himself from the overly tan, blonde's clutches.

It was around 2 a.m. when most of the people began to head for their limos.

Bruce leaned over the balcony of the large staircase in the entrance hall. He jovially thanked people for coming and told them to drive safe.

"That's what we hire the drivers for, old bean!" said a jolly old man with flush cheeks. He gave Bruce a pat on the back as he left with his wife of fifty years.

"Let's paint the town red, my beautiful bride!"

"Oh Nate!" she giggled like a school girl, "You're such a card!"

Bruce watched the pair leave with a smile. They were old friends of his father's. His parents would have celebrated their 40th anniversary that year as well. He sighed and shook those dark thoughts away.

Bruce rested his arms on the railing. Tonight had been a long night. But, as he thought back on the night's events, he'd have to say that he had actually had 'fun' when he was with Wally, Dick, and Barbara.

He wondered where the trio had gotten to…in fact…where were all the servers and several of his business friends…? Not to mention Lois… He hadn't seen any of them leave.

"_I have a bad feeling about this…"_

Bruce headed to the Ballroom to investigate. There he saw many a drunken party boy still chatting with one another about the frivolous things they found important like their new car or how well they could golf.

He caught sight of Nora whaling to one of them about the woes of her broken nail, like she was going to die from it. The she complained about the fact that she had lost a diamond from her jewel-encrusted high-heals.

Bruce turned the other way and hastily made his escape.

Suddenly a voice called from behind him,

"Bruce! There you are!"

He turned to see his old business friend, Lucius Fox, walking towards him.

"Hello, Lucius. Glad to see that you could make it."

"I've been looking every where for you. You have to come see this, it's hilarious!" said the man with the graying hair as he dragged Bruce by the arm towards the large kitchen area behind the Ballroom.

"_Oh good lord, now what's going on?"_

Bruce heard a harmonica playing jazz riffs as he and Lucius drew closer to the room.

Lucius gave him a wink and opened the door, "Welcome to the real party."

Bruce started at the sight of the serving staff and several of his business friends swing dancing between the large metallic tables. Barbara and Dick were cutting a rug on top of the largest table in the middle of the room. Everyone was laughing and having a good time.

Wally was of course the ringleader of the whole affair. He was the one blowing his heart out on the harmonica. Dick then threw Babs into the air and caught her as she did an upside-down split. Her dress came down over her head as she flashed the audience with the sight of her undies. When Dick put her down, she smacked him as her face turned bright red. Lois watched in the corner, having a field day. Ray stood not far from her, talking to a lovely brown haired woman by the name of Angela.

Both server and guest spoke to each other as equals and laughed together at the hilarious sights as one. Bruce felt his heart swell with emotion and before he knew it, he had let loose a booming laugh.

Several people froze and stared at the man. Most the servants were afraid at being caught not working. The business people who really knew Bruce Wayne were in shock at how real his laugh was. Lois, Wally, Dick, Babs, Ray and Alfred were just blown away by the fact that he laughed AT ALL.

Wally suddenly smiled and wheeled himself over to Bruce.

"Well it's about time!" he said.

Bruce just gave the kid an annoyed look. Then he addressed the crowd.

"It's all right everyone. Don't stop on my account. This is a party after all…" said Bruce cynically.

Several people smiled at him and did just that.

Wally gave him a wink and went back to playing the harmonica.

Bruce folded his arms and shook his head.

"You know…"whispered a sly voice from behind him, "It's funny…Superman told me that Flash broke both his legs in a battle a week ago…and then suddenly, a man pops up in your house in the same predicament…what a coincidence, huh?"

If it had been any other person, Bruce would be horrified that someone had discovered Wally's secret.

"You going to blow the whistle on him?"

The woman snorted, "Please, if I haven't yet on you, what makes you think I will on him. Besides…I've got enough juicy stuff tonight to fill twenty columns. I'll be milking this event for a good, _long _while…"

Bruce smirked and nonchalantly asked,

"So the glasses didn't fool you then, huh?"

The dark haired woman laughed and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"They never_ have_. And they never _will_."

Lois Lane sauntered out of the room with an evil look in her eye as Bruce let loose another booming laugh thinking, _"So this is what it's like to have fun at a party…"_

* * *

Author's Notes: Sarah Flairon , Rory Talhoon, Nora Karen, Nate, and Angela were people all made up by me. Any resemblance to any other living or not living being is merely coincidence. I hope you liked them all!

Next Time: Wally FINALLY gets his casts off! Bruce dresses up as a lumberjack so he can pick Wally, his 'brother,' up at the hospital. Who knew finding an immobile red head in a hospital would be so difficult?!!

"I'm not dressing up as a lumberjack! Just because I put on a fake beard and a flannel shirt, doesn't make me a lumberjack." said Bruce with a glare.

_Wally and Mists look to each other and an evil smile appears on their faces._

_Wally and Mists sing: _"I'M A LUMBERJACK AND-"

_Bruce pulls out his batarang._

"If either of you sing one more line of that Monty Python song your both DEAD!"

_Mists and Wally cling to each other and hide in the corner._

"That's bet-"

_Mists and Wally start to hum it._

"THAT'S IT! I'm taking back those lawyers I lent you to be in the Yueh hunting mob!"

_Bruce walks away._

_Mists screams and throws herself to the ground and clings to Bruce's right leg._

"NOOO! Bob said he'd do my taxes this year!!! Anything but that! PLEASE! I'll get audited!!"

_Bruce drags a pleading Mists off screen._

_

* * *

_

Hehehe! Please read and review!


	15. Day 4, Week 2: Hospitals and Lumberjacks

Disclaimer: I'm a LUMBERJACK and I own nothing!!

* * *

**-Day 4, Week 2: Hospitals and Lumberjacks-**

**-Wally's POV-**

Wally REALLY hated hospitals. He didn't like to see others in pain. Every time he visited one, he just felt the need to cheer everyone around him up. The one thing he never understood was why hospitals were so bland. Stark white walls and rooms filled with beeping equipment didn't do much to heal one's spirit. People often forget that healing is a dual process, of both body _and_ soul.

Alfred had dropped Wally off at a hospital in the outskirts of Gotham city. Before he left to go grocery shopping for the _fifth _time, he gave Wally with a fake ID and medical information.

Wally raised an eyebrow at his new 'name.'

"'Wally _East_?'"

"_Oh BAD pun! I swear Bats has the driest of sense of humor of anyone I've ever met."_

"Well everything should be in order," said Alfred as he got up to leave. He was wearing civilian dress instead of his normal butler outfit.

"I shall return in two and a half hours. Hopefully the doctors will have tended to you by the time I return."

Wally snorted, "Please Al, I once spent five hours in just the waiting room alone."

"It must have been a busy day…" Alfred noticed the far away look on Wally face, "May I ask, what for?"

Wally then shook his head to snap out of it.

"Oh you know…kids are always getting themselves banged up."

He rubbed the back of his head and turned away to avoid looking Alfred in the eye.

But Alfred could plainly see that he had struck a nerve with the boy, and decided to leave well enough alone.

"Indeed….well then, I shall leave you to the paperwork." Alfred turned to leave, "Oh and please try not to get into _too_ much trouble while I'm gone."

Wally gave him a salute and watched the man go out the door.

* * *

After Wally had finished filling out the paperwork, he sat in the waiting room. Being still in anyway always rattled his nerves. So he picked up a fishing magazine that was dated three years ago. Everything else on the rack was either teeny bopper stuff or Homemaker Monthly.

_-Shiver-_

He decided to take his chances with the fish and started to read.

"_Ewww! I don't think I'd want to own a bait preparing device that can ALSO make Julianne Fries! Might get those two uses confused!"_

Wally then pictured someone eating fried fish guts and another person baiting his fishing hook with a French Fry…

"_Hehehe! Talk about your 'Fish Stick'! Oi… That was bad…I must be really bored to be coming up with material like that…"_

Wally sighed and looked up from his magazine. His eyes glanced around the room and took stock of the people sitting there. In front of him sat a pregnant woman reading a magazine, to her right was an old man with a steady cough, and to her left sat what he assumed to be a father with his son.

The boy had apparently twisted or broken his ankle because the ice bag he was holding on it.

"Here son," said the man to the boy, "Prop your foot on my lap, okay? It's better to keep it elevated."

"Aww…"said the boy, "That's okay, Pops. I'm a big boy! I can…ow…"

His little face flinched with pain.

The man just rolled his eyes and grabbed the boy's leg and propped it on his lap.

"There you go…Now I hope you learned your lesson about attempting those skateboarding tricks of yours without the proper pads."

"Yeah, well if that poodle hadn't come out of _nowhere_ I would have been fine!"

Wally snorted and couldn't resist adding his own to cents into the conversation.

"You might want to say it was a bulldog…..maybe three of them, it sounds more manly. But your Dad's right there kid, you could have broken leg. Just look at me! I've been in these casts for _months_."

The boy's eyes widened has he saw both of Wally's legs in casts.

"Jeeze, Mister! What on earth did you do?!"

"Well…" Wally then proceeded to regale the kid with a _totally_ fabricated tale about a stunt he tried to pull off with a mountain bike, three Scotty dogs, twelve dirt bikes, fake dog vomit, 50,000 eggs, and a chainsaw.

"And if I had worn my safety gear, I won't be in this mess." He gestured to his casts.

The boy's father just shook his head as his son stared at him in awe.

"Wow…you are the coolest guy on the planet! Can I sign your casts?"

Wally laughed, "Well…they are going to be coming off in a few minutes, but sure kid."

The boy nearly jumped up and landed on his bad ankle. Luckily his father stopped him from doing so.

"Wait up there champ! I think its better if Mister…"

"Just Wally, please."

The man nodded his head.

"I'm sure Wally wouldn't mind coming over here, so you can sign it."

"Sure thing." Wally wheeled over and let the kid sign his casts.

While the kid was busy looking for the perfect spot, the boy's father whispered in Wally's ear.

"Thanks for cheering him up it really took his mind off of his ankle. The underlining lesson you snuck in there was good too but….50,000 eggs and a chainsaw?"

Wally laughed, "Yeah, well…. didn't think a warehouse accident would have the same _zing_ to it."

The father nodded in understanding.

"_I hate lying to people. But what am I going to do? It comes with the territory of being a superhero."_

"Boy! You sure do have a lot of friends Wally. Who are GL and Supes?"

"_Crap…"_

"Uh….just nicknames of some friends of mine…."

"'Next time, put on the breaks hotshot. –GL'" the kid read aloud.

The father laughed and tried to pull his son away.

"Okay son. I think it's time we left Wally alone."

"Awww..HEY! Someone stuck a Batman sticker on here!"

"_What the- Oh he did not do what I think he did…"_

"Oh…_really_ can I see that?"

The kid pulled off the little metallic Bat-symbol and handed it to Wally.

"_That 'ass!'"_

Wally smirked and crushed the 'sticker' in his hand.

"That _brother_ of mine, always pulling pranks on me..."

"East, Wally," called a woman from the door to the waiting room.

"That would be me. Nice taking to you guys. See yah later!"

Wally wheeled out of the room behind the nurse. As the door shut, Wally looked back fondly at the father and son.

"He was nice, wasn't he Dad?" said the boy as he snuggled up to his father ready to take a nap.

The father embraced his son gently.

"He sure was son. You rest now, everything will be okay…."

Wally felt tears build in his eyes as the door shut behind him.

"_There isn't a day that goes bye, that I don't wish my father was that kind of man. You're lucky kid, never take him for granted."_

"Right this way Mr. East, we'll have those casts off in a jiffy!" said the bubbly nurse as she led him to the examination room.

But for some reason, Wally's joy seemed subdued….

* * *

**-Bruce's POV-**

_Ring! Ring!_

Bruce picked up the phone on his desk.

"Hello?"

"Oh, Master Bruce, I'm glad I got a hold of you. I'm stuck in a terrible traffic jam. Master Wally should have gotten his casts removed an hour ago. I'll never be able to pick him up at this rate."

"But I can't Alfr-"

"Not as _Bruce Wayne_, Sir….You're a master of disguise, I'm sure you will come up with something suitable. Now I have to go. Please pick him up as soon as you can. Thank you, Sir."

Bruce just stared at the receiver after Alfred hung up.

"_But I HATE hospitals…"_

* * *

Bruce decided to go as low key as possible. The hospital was still in the city limits of Gotham after all. He might be spotted. Bruce grabbed a flannel shirt and a pair of jeans. Then he stuck on a fake beard and made his hair as scruffy looking as possible.

He went to his garage and backed out the Ford truck that he used on occasion when he had to go somewhere incognito.

Thirty minutes later, he got out of the truck at the hospital.

"_How does Alfred always talk me into these things?"_

Bruce then pulled out his tracking device to see floor Wally was on.

The scanner didn't pick up a single bleep.

"_Damn it! The brat must have found the tracking device I stuck on his cast. Well guess I'll have to do this the old fashion way."_

Bruce put the device away and walked through the sliding doors.

The air had an antiseptic smell. One that he remembered quite clearly…. Every time he entered a place like this, it sent a chill down his spine. To him, this wasn't a place where people were healed, … it was where he saw them for the last time.

Bruce took a calming breath and focused himself on the task at hand.

"_Find Wally, and get out."_

Bruce stuck his hands in his pockets and began to whistle as he went up to the front desk. He carefully adjusted his very body language to be as loose and unassuming as possible.

"Hey there, Hun," he said with a bit of a drawl.

The nurse didn't seem amused.

"I don't take, 'kindly' to being called that 'Paul Bunyan,'" replied the tall woman with light brown hair.

"Sorry, Miss…"

"Grayvord, now what can I help you with?" she asked a bit curtly.

"_Oh yeah, she's definitely the healing type…"_

Bruce just kept up his laid back smile.

"I'm here to pick up my brother, Wally East. You know where he's at in this zoo?"

The nurse narrowed her eyes at him, clearly still peeved, as she searched the database.

"He's in the Out-patient Ward, 12th floor, Level C, Room 1224. Now if you don't mind, _Hun_, I've got work to do, NEXT!" she called as an elderly woman pushed Bruce out of way with a shove of her cane.

"_Joy, now I'm getting beat up by the elderly too." _

Bruce made his way to the elevator. At first he thought his luck was changing when it came and he was the only one getting on. But just as the doors started to close, an arm poked its way through the opening.

"Whew! Glad we caught it," said a woman as she squeezed through the door with her twin boys in tow.

The woman pushed the button on the panel for her floor and took her two children by the hands.

The two kids were staring up a Bruce with awe. It was making him feel very uncomfortable.

One of the boys, pulled on his mother's sleeve to get her attention.

"Momma! Look! It's 'Al Borland' from 'Home Improvement!'"

"Can you get us 'Tim's' autograph?"

Bruce inwardly groaned.

"_I knew this disguise was a bad idea."_

"Kids," said the woman sternly, "leave that poor man alone. Just because he has a flannel shirt on, doesn't automatically make him 'Al,' that's called stereotyping."

Both kids looked down at their feet ashamed.

"Besides…he's probably a lumberjack….Oh! Here's our floor!" exclaimed the women as she dragged her kids out the door.

"_And that statement wasn't MORE stereotypical?!!"_

Hypocrites made his head hurt.

_Ding!_

Bruce looked at the floor number.

"Four?"

Then Bruce looked down at the button panel.

"_DAMN IT! One of those brats pushed all the buttons! This is going to take forever!"_

Lucky for Bruce, no one else wanted to ride with 'the crazy swearing wild man' in the elevator.

Finally he had reached Wally's floor, in a very bad mood.

He walked over to Room 1224, bent on giving Wally a piece of his mind for being the reason he was trapped in this hell.

Bruce opened the door….to find a nurse fluffing a pillow on an empty bed….

"Oh!" she said a little surprised, "Is there something I can help you with, Sir?"

"_This is BAD."_

"Uh…yeah, could you tell me what happened to the man in this room?"

The clueless woman shook her head.

"No. I was just told to clean up this room for the next patient."

"Well I was told that my _brother_ was in this room. And now I have no clue where he _IS_," said Bruce sternly as his concern was mounting.

"Oh dear! I'll get Nurse Nancy, she's the head of the floor! Stay here, I'll be right back!" she called franticly as she raced out the door.

"_Is everyone in this hospital insane?!"_

Though Bruce didn't want to admit it, he was really worried. Wally was still confined to a wheelchair until his muscles could support his weight again. He'd be walking with a cane within a day or so…but right now he was still too vulnerable.

"_Who knew finding an immobile red head would be so difficult? God I wish he still had that tracer on him now…"_

"Yo. Lumberjack, come here," called an elderly gentleman in the room across from Wally's.

Bruce turned to him.

"Look I'm a litt-"

"You're looking for Wally, right?"

The man adjusted his bed so he was sitting up. The oxygen tank wheezed next to him as he took a deep breath.

"_Please _tell me you know where he went …" exclaimed Bruce as he was wearing on his last nerve.

"He came in here to cheer me up an hour ago. Fine kid that one. He just wheeled himself in here and started a conversation with me. Darnest thing I've ever seen anyone do for a stranger."

Bruce couldn't help but give the man a bit of a smile.

"That's my _brother_ all right. So…you know where he went to after that?"

The man took another breath from the oxygen tank.

"He could be anywhere around here really. The boy said that he wanted to spread some sunshine while he was here. Though…he _did_ ask me where the Children's Ward was…."

"_Huh…should have known that's where he'd go. Wally's always had a soft spot for kids in pain."_

Though Bruce wouldn't admit it, he had the same spot too.

"Thanks. I'd better go find him…."

The old man laughed, "You go do that son. The Children's Ward is all the way on the other side of the building on the same floor. There's stuffed animals and balloons everywhere, you can't miss it."

"Thanks again…Oh can you?" Bruce pointed in the direction of where the crazed nurse went.

"Sure thing. It's that girl's first week, poor thing. She's really high strung. I'll tell her and Nancy where you went…"

Bruce turned to leave as the man called after him, "You're brother's one in a million, son. You're lucky to have him."

"I'll remember that…."

"_After I ring his neck for worrying me like this."_

Bruce ran down the hall until he reached the Children's Ward. It was different then the other hospital wards. It was brightly colored with cheerful bears and butterflies adorning the walls. He could feel his heart go out to the poor kids who ended up there.

He placed his hand on the handle of the door and opened it slowly…

What Bruce beheld, nearly made the hardened man cry.

Amidst a sea of pillows sat Wally. On the ground with him were twenty children seated in a circle. In his lap, he held an open storybook. But it seemed that during the course of the story, each and every child had fallen asleep. One was even using Wally's shoulder as a pillow. The speedster had his eyes closed and appeared to have fallen under the power of the story's sway as well.

It was the most peaceful thing, he had ever seen.

Bruce leaned on the door frame, closed his eyes, and allowed the calm scene to wash over him. He had nearly fallen asleep there himself when he heard rapid footsteps coming down the hall.

He quickly turned around with a "Shhh!"

The two women slowed down to halt in front of him, breathing heavily.

"You're Nurse Nancy, I presume."

"Yes, did you find your brother Mr. East?"

"Yeah…but I don't have the heart to wake him up…" Bruce gestured over to the scene in the ward.

The young nurse, who Bruce had met earlier, gasped as tears began to roll down her cheeks.

"That's the sweetest thing I've ever seen!"

Nurse Nancy just folded her arms across her chest with a smile.

"Well…I'll be….I've never seen anyone do that before…."

"Yeah…" said Bruce with a bit of a smile.

The three stood there for several minutes, not wanting to disturb a thing.

Then Nurse Nancy whispered softly, "That boy has a heart of gold….You're lucky to have a brother like him, you know…."

Bruce gave the woman a small smile and went back to looking at the peaceful scene.

"_Yeah…I know…"_

* * *

Author's Notes: Next Time, Bruce and Wally begin to _train_. Bruce throwing exploding boomerangs at him was NOT WALLY'S IDEA OF TRAINING!! XD

_Bruce sits in his office reading a newspaper._

_A knock comes at the door._

"Yo! Boss…we got that Yueh lady for yah."

_Bruce changes into his OTHER alter ego, "Matches Malone," mob boss to Gotham's underground._

_Bob, Harry, and the others bring her in the room._

_Bruce idly chews on the match stuck between his teeth._

"So…you like messing with my Boss, Mists ehhhh…Well we can play that game, too. Boys, I want you to fill the room across from here with all the cookies you can find…then tie her to a chair and leave her in there!"

_The guys all gasp._

"Man Boss! That's just cruel!!!"

"I know. It was Mists idea…no one's more evil then her. Remember that! Take her away…"

* * *

Hehehe! See Bruce is a mob boss! Matches (Bruce's OTHER alter ego) is actually in the comics guys. He's how Bruce gets all his underground information. So I don't own him. Oh, and for those of you who have no idea what's going on, read Lady Yueh's reviews on the fic's review page. I just wanted to let all rest of you in on the fun, which is why I'm writing my responses down here at the end.

Hehehe! XD

Until next time! Remember to read and review!


	16. Day 5, Week 2: Training: Batstyle

Disclaimer: I don't own Wally or Bruce. They are just my crazed muses.

_Wally and Bruce_: "HEY."

Let the training begin.

* * *

**-Day 5, Week 2:Training: Batstyle-**

**-Wally's POV-**

Wally was sleeping soundly in his bed at Wayne Manor. He hadn't slept this well in days. It felt _SO _good to have those casts off. No more itching. No more bonking into things. And best of all, he could toss and turn in his sleep freely again. Yes, it was safe to say that Wally was in his own personal heaven.

He could have slept all day. Content in the comfort and warmth of his sheets, but it seemed that a certain, 'sadistic rat with wings' had _other_ plans….

He felt the batarang the second Bruce let it fly. Wally woke with a start, just in time to see it strike his bedpost.

Wally just stared at the thing as he shakily turned to Bruce, who casually leaned on the doorframe with a sinister smirk on his face. He wore a standard Karate Gi and had another batarang in hand.

"What in the HELL was that for? You nearly gave me a heart attack!" yelled Wally as he tried to collect himself.

Bruce's grin grew wider.

"_That_ was the start of your training."

Bruce gestured to the closet.

"I had Alfred wash some of Dick's old Karate uniforms. Take a shower and get dressed. I want you in the cave in 30 minutes."

"_Awww MAN! There goes my nice restful day."_

Wally heard the other batarang fly. He launched himself out of bed and landed on the floor.

The batarang embedded itself right into Wally's pillow.

"Are you insane?! I can barely even _WALK_ yet. And you're chucking projectiles at me!"

"Thirty minutes. If you're not down there, I'll come and find you….and _trust me _it won't be pleasant."

Bruce turned to leave, "By the way, I left a cane next to your bed 'old man.' I suggest you use it…."

Bruce left the room with a whistle as he _happily_ made his way down to the cave.

Wally pushed himself up off the floor and crawled over to the cane.

He sighed as he grabbed the wall for support and got to his feet.

"'_Sadistic' doesn't even do him justice. Dick was right. This is going to be a LONG day…"_

* * *

After Wally had taken his shower, he searched through Dick's different Karate outfits and, of course, chose to wear the red one with the black belt.

Wally made his way down to the cave, grabbing the wall with one hand and the cane with his other. He moved very carefully as he limped the whole way down. After one and a half weeks, his leg muscles had turned to jelly. He could barely support his own weight. It was a nightmare getting down to the cave.

"_He could have at least left the wheelchair for me so I could get down here! I'm already exhausted." _

Though Wally wouldn't admit it, he was already walking better because of the workout. He could feel a bit of his strength returning, but not much. No, Bruce wasn't doing this to help him, it was just he's own sick way of torturing Wally, pure and simple.

Wally wasn't about to cave to the Bat. Not now, not ever.

Bruce waited with his arms folded while standing on the training mat he had rolled out.

He looked down at his watch.

"You're twenty seconds late," said Bruce coldly.

"_Two can play at this game."_

Wally put the cane under his arm and used it to prop himself up as he gave Bruce an _honorable_ bow.

"Forgive me, _Sensei_, I seem to be rather slow today."

Bruce glared at him.

"Watch it, you cocky ass. I'm not going to go easy on you. I told Ray I'd train you, and that's exactly what I'm going to do."

Bruce walked over to Wally and harshly ripped the cane out of his hands. Wally fell to the floor like a ton of bricks.

Bruce grabbed a tuff of Wally's red hair and pulled his head up to look him in the eye.

"You'll get this back when you learn two important things, Respect and Discipline."

Bruce let go of Wally hair and his chin hit the floor.

"Now…get on your back and stick your feet in the air."

Wally glared at him as he complied with the _'Rat's' _request.

"_Undisciplined am I?_ _Well I'll show him just how much I can really take."_

As Wally put his legs in the air, Bruce brought over a chair and a couple of weights.

"The first exercise will focus on strengthening your legs."

Bruce picked up the chair and placed it, seat down, on top of Wally's feet.

"I want you to pump this chair up and down with your legs. Every ten minutes I'm going to add on another five pound weight. If you drop the chair, we will start over again until I have placed the maximum amount on your legs. You will then pump it for a full hour. Is that clear 'baka?'"

Wally had watched enough anime to know that Bruce just called him an idiot in Japanese.

"Crystal-_Sensei,_" Wally replied coolly as he stared up at the ceiling and prepared for the onslaught of taunts and physical pain.

After Bruce had put twenty pounds of weight on the chair, Wally's legs gave out. He quickly dodged to avoid being crushed by falling weights. Once Wally was out of danger he just rested his head on the ground and panted for breath. His breathing was heavy like he had just run around the world seven times.

"Twenty pounds?" questioned Bruce clearly disappointed with this number.

"Normally you'd have three hundred pounds of thrust behind those legs. That was pitiful! Do it again…_NOW_."

Wally looked up at Bruce. He stared long and hard at him. Slowly a small grin grew on his tired face. A fire ignited in his eyes, as he pushed himself back over on his back and stuck his feet in the air.

"Ready Sensei!" he called out in forceful and serious tone.

Gone was the cynical sarcasm, and left in its wake was a resolved student. Ready to take everything his sensei threw at him.

Bruce had a bit of a smirk on his face when he set up the chair again.

_"Bring it on Batboy, I can take whatever you dish out..."_

* * *

It took Wally 4 hours, and countless tries to finally reach Bruce's goal of a pumping a hundred fifty pounds. Of course, Bruce didn't _tell_ Wally that was his goal until _after _the boy had reached it.

"A hundred fifty pounds?!!"

Wally looked like he was going to faint, "How could you expect me to do that after I've been in a wheelchair for two weeks and could barely support my own weight?!"

Bruce just smirked as went to get his utility belt from the glass costume case.

"You did it though, didn't you?"

Wally's mouth just hung open. For once, the speedster was speechless.

"Wa-Well…_yeah_…But-"

"No 'buts.' Now it's on to the next exercise…"

"_The NEXT exercise? Oh GOD I'm gonna DIE!"_

Wally didn't say that out loud of course. He knew by now that if he gripped and groaned it would only make matters worse. So he drew all his tiredness inward, took a deep breath, and stood up…

"_What the? Hey! I can support my own weight again!"_

The surprise on Wally's face made Bruce snort. He quickly turned away and pretended it was a cough.

"As I was saying…this next exercise is going to focus on refining the use of your 'speed' power."

Wally's ears perked up at that.

"But Bruce, I already do that in my experiments…."

"Not to this degree, you don't."

Bruce walked up to Wally and looked him right in the eye.

"I've watched you use your powers for sometime now, Wally. There are endless possibilities of the things you could do with them. But you lack the discipline to utilize their full potential."

Wally kept quiet, curious as to where Bruce was going with this. How could Bruce assume that he understood his powers better then Wally did? Unless…

"_Damn it Ray! How much did you tell him about me? No wonder he's been acting weird since Ray came."_

Wally's thoughts were interrupted by Bruce.

"The next exercise involves you using your super speed to run in place, while keeping the upper part of your body moving at normal speed."

Wally couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"But Bruce! That's im-"

"Nothing is impossible Wally. You just need practice. If you can do it with your arm or your hand, then you can do it with any other part of your body too. Ray and I are pretty sure that you can accomplish this with practice."

"_HA! I knew they had teamed up against me!"_

Wally sighed, "All right, I'll give it a go…."

It took Wally nearly two hours, but he did eventually get his legs to move at high speed while his upper body stayed perfectly still.

"Uh…well I'll be dipped…it actually worked!"

Bruce gave him a curt nod of approval.

"Good, now here's the next step."

Bruce reached into his utility belt and pulled out a batarang.

"_Something tells me I'm not going to like this…"_

"Now, I want you to stay in that one place, while still running, and catch this batarang _without_ using your super speed. When you do success in catching it, I want you to throw it back to me at normal speed."

"But!"

_**GLARE**_

"Okay! FINE! Jeeze! I swear I'm starting to think you're more sadistic then 'The Trickster!'"

Bruce raised an eyebrow and flung the batarang at Wally.

"Who?"

Miraculously, Wally actually caught the thing without using his speed and sent it back at Bruce.

"Uh? Oh…he's one of my villains. His shtick is a lot like the Joker's."

"Really?" asked Bruce as he sent the batarang back at Wally, "I think I've read about him in the paper a few times."

Wally caught it and flung it back.

"Yeah, except he's not quite as…homicidally twisted as the Joker. He's not as dangerous either."

Wally shivered as Bruce caught the batarang.

"Few villains are."

He launched it back to Wally.

"Don't I know it. The Trickster knows his way around a chemistry set, but he's nowhere near the Joker's level. Deep down though, he's not a bad guy."

Wally threw it back to Bruce.

"Watch it, that one had a bit of speed in it that time."

Wally grunted and focused himself again.

"So..how do you know that?" questioned Bruce causally as he sent the weapon back at Wally.

"Know what?"

Wally sent it right back at him.

"That…deep down he's not like the Joker."

The two continued to volley the batarang back and forth effortlessly as their conversation gathered more momentum.

"I've met him."

"What?"

"His name is James…he stays at the Central City Asylum half the time. See…when he's taking his meds…well he's fine. But when he gets off them, then he becomes 'The Trickster…'"

Bruce averted his eyes for a moment in thought.

"Are you this well versed with all your villains?"

"Aren't you Bruce? 'Know thy enemy and my friend,' seems to be your mantra most of the time."

"Well..knowing an enemy isn't the same as _helping one._"

"Don't you have a few enemies that you just can help but…feel for?"

"Yes. A few…" admitted the man while trying not to look Wally in the eye.

Wally seemed a bit surprised by this. He had assumed the answer to be no. Batman was known to be the hardest of all the heroes on villains. Mostly that was because 'Bats' rouges were known as some of the most sinister in the world.

"Who…"

Bruce let out a sigh. Apparently, he really hadn't wanted the conversation to go there.

"One was… well..one of my friends…Harvey Dent."

"Two-Face?" whispered Wally as he sent the batarang back at Bruce again.

"I tried everything to reach him kid. To make him remember who he was, to fight his demons. I got him the best help…and still nothing worked…"

Wally then came upon a realization. He remembered that the one institution that Bruce Wayne contributed most was the 'Arkham Asylum.'

"_All this time. After all his villains have done to him…he still tries to help them._ _I never thought Bats would do something like that…That sounds more like something, I would do…It's strange, I think I'm starting to understand…just who Batman really is…"_

"Well," said Wally as he caught the batarang for a final time and stopped running, "remember..'Nothing is impossible' right? You'll just have to wait and see what happens …"

Bruce looked up at Wally a little startled at having his own words flung back at him. He examined Wally with an accusatory eye, then his trademark frown came back in full force.

He walked up to Wally and ripped the batarang out of his hands.

"Getting a little cocky again, aren't you hotshot?" asked Bruce as an evil grin spread across his face.

"_Uh oh! I really don't like the looks of this!!"_

"Next exercise…. dodge the exploding batarangs!"

Bruce let two fly.

"GAHHH!! Bats! This isn't funny!!"

Bruce ignored him as he continued his assault.

Wally caught one, and was about to fling it back at Bruce, when he noticed a strange beeping sound coming from it.

"_What the-"_

Suddenly a thousand bats came out of nowhere, screeching like a vengeful cloud of banshees hot for his blood.

"OH CRAP! IT'S THE BATCALL ONE!! GAHHHH!!!"

Wally ran around the cave like his life depended on it, as the bats kept up their hot pursuit.

Bruce leaned back against the lab table and watched the fun. Wondering how long it would take Wally to figure out that if he threw away the batarang, they would stop following him.

Bruce grinned as Wally continued to run around waving his arms screaming,

"BRUUUUCE!!!! GET THEM OFF OF MEEE!"

* * *

**-Bruce's POV-**

It had taken Wally twenty minutes to figure out how to get rid of the 'Bats of Death.' He had scratches and band-aids all over his body. Bruce picked up the First Aid Kit and went to put it away.

"You know you could have just TOLD me to throw the stupid thing away!"

Bruce smirked as he came back from the closet.

"Now where would the fun be in that?"

"You! Dah-GAHH! Man you're EVIL!"

"Took you long enough to figure that one out."

Wally's eye began to twitch as Bruce calmly spoke to him with a look of pride on his face.

"_Ahhh…revenge is ever so sweet…remember this when you try to prank me again kid. I can give back all that you can give and more."_

"So, now what?" asked Wally in an exasperated state, "Fling me to the sharks with laser beams on their heads?!"

Bruce tried to hide a chuckle and failed. He was finding it harder and harder not to laugh in Wally's presence. And strangely enough… he was beginning not to care whether or not he did.

But he'd concern himself with that later.

"No. The _last_ exercise of the day…"

Bruce saw Wally's eyes light up at the word, _last_.

"Is….. to meditate."

Wally nearly passed out from joy.

"Now Wally, this is the most important part of your training. The key here is to _**SLOW DOWN**_. If you meditate at least and hour a day, I think you'll find that your focus will improve, but also your ability to turn on and off your powers at will."

Wally pumped his arm for joy.

"All right!! That's awesome! So what do I do?" asked Wally as he bounced up and down in his seat.

Bruce grabbed the bridge of his nose and shook his head.

"_This is SO not going to work…"_

A few minutes later, both Bruce and Wally sat back to back, both in the lotus position on the floor.

Bruce was hoping to get a _few_ minutes of silence from Wally… but apparently that was too much to hope for.

"Hey..Bats," he muttered out of the side of his mouth.

"_He's never going to get this."_

"Meditation doesn't involve _talking,_ Wally."

"Yeah…I know…but I'm bored."

"You need to clear you're mind of thoughts…that shouldn't be too hard for you."

"Hey…watch it there! But..seriously Bruce, am I gonna start floating here or something? Is that what I'm aiming for?"

"_Why me?"_

"No. You are working on being _calm_ and _still_, so you can turn off your powers…okay…"

"_Sigh…_okay."

Silence once again reigned…. for all of twelve seconds.

"Hey, Bruce."

"_Doesn't he have an 'off' switch?"_

"What _now_?" exclaimed Bruce, clearly at the end of his rope now.

Wally sounded a little strange…almost hurt.

"Sorry….it's just…I wanted to say thank you."

Bruce stayed silent as Wally continued.

"I … know the others kinda pushed me on you when I got hurt. And I know I've been a pain in your butt…But for what it's worth…I'm glad I came to stay with you... So…thanks."

Bruce le those words sink in. How did he feel about Wally staying there? And why on earth was he 'glad' to have come here? Bruce and Wally were like night and day. They had fought most of the time.

By the time Bruce had turned around to ask him what he meant by that, he heard faint snorting sound coming from the kid.

Bruce rolled his eyes.

"_Great. He fell asleep. Now I got to carry him up the stairs, AGAIN,_" he sighed and looked at the clock.

"_It's nearly nine p.m. Time to go patrolling."_

Bruce hoisted Wally up on his shoulder, and carried the young man up to bed.

All the while thinking,

"_I'm glad you came too, kid."_

Though he'd never admit it.

* * *

Author's Note: So there you go! Please read and review! Reviews help inspire me to write more…and I think you all will want me to… soon enough…._hehehe…_

Next Time: Real monsters can't be chased away by light alone. But still we light the candle in the hopes that some force will come to save us. Even when all hope is gone, a light still burns…in our hearts…and in the night sky.

Welcome to 'Nightlight.'

Let the games begin…..


	17. Nightlight

Disclaimer: "'Welcome to my parlor….'"

* * *

**-Nightlight-**

**-Bruce's POV-**

The wind whipped around him as he glided through the night. Clouds blotted out the moon and stars as if denying the world the smallest glimmer of natural light. A storm was brewing. Bruce could feel it in his bones. Even as a boy, he could tell when the weather would turn for the worse. The cold penetrated every defense, leaving his heart empty as his other senses heightened. His skin tingled as the moist air gently caressed his face.

As the mists settled in, a beacon of light suddenly blazed forth. It illumined the night, piercing it like a sword. The symbol of a bat hung inside the ring of light. A silhouette of darkness, encased in the warm glow of light. It was the metaphor of Bruce's life. Light was all around him, but he never allowed it to erase the shadow within.

Batman dashed these thoughts away as he approached the roof of the abandon building where the Bat-signal was housed. The dark knight alighted down to the roof, as silent as a shadow. He positioned himself behind the large air ventilation unit on opposite side of the roof from the signal light. Something wasn't right.

No one was on the roof.

As Batman prepared to scan the area for life signs, a shadowy figure emerged from behind the light fixture.

One thing was certain,… the person was not Commissioner Gordon.

The figure stood, silhouetted by the spotlight. The person wore a large brimmed hat and an oversized trench coat covering up any distinguishable features. The coat was noticeably long and baggy. The fabric actually pooled around the figure's feet. The person appeared to be barely five feet tall.

"_Is this someone's idea of a joke? If so…how on earth did they get the light lit? Gordon's the only one with the key…"_

But that didn't necessarily mean it was impossible to accomplish. Several villains had performed similar ploys in the past to get his attention. He doubted that this time would be any different.

Batman reached into his utility belt and pulled out two batarangs. He'd take out the light first and then use the distraction to go in and finish the job.

He was about to throw, when the figure spoke.

"I know you're there Batman. There's no point in hiding."

Batman's eyes narrowed at the figure. He was not one to lose his element of surprise so easily. He noted that the figure's voice sounded forced, as if to make it sound deeper then normal.

The figure sighed.

"I know you're behind the air unit. Please come out. I don't have a lot of time."

"_Villains don't usually use the word 'please.' I'd better keep my guard up. Something isn't right about this whole thing."_

Batman kept his batarangs at the ready folded inside his palms, hidden from view. He slowly stepped out of the shadows and approached the figure.

"Who are you, and why did you call me here?"

The figure hesitated for a moment.

"Last week…you stumbled upon, what you believed to be an animal testing facility. Correct?"

Batman's jaw tighten as his eyes narrowed to slits.

"How-"

He stopped mid-sentence as the figure reached inside his trench coat.

Batman reacted immediately. Snapping the batarang in his right hand open and prepared to throw.

"Make any sudden moves and I let this thing fly."

The figure froze. A piece of paper could be seen sticking out from his inner pocket.

"It's only a note….I-you know Flash, from the League, right?"

The figure's voice cracked a little, his hard resolve quickly fading.

"_What the? He almost sounds like a-"_

Suddenly the figure moved at amazing speed and stopped right next to Batman. Before he knew what was happening, his batarang was gone and he was holding the letter instead.

"Get this to him. He'll know what it means. If you believe _us_, meet us tomorrow night at midnight, on the roof of 37th and Norrington Road……. _We're_ running out of time."

Batman turned to the covered figure on his right. Before he had even completely turned his head, the figure had swiftly fled back into the night.

He opened his palm and extracted the crumpled note. As he read his eyes widened in confusion and horror.

_Find Dr. Milo. _

_We didn't run away, Flash._

_-Matt, Elena, and Danny_

His horror came not from what was written on the note………

But because of the streak of blood.

* * *

**-Wally's POV-**

_It was Christmas Eve. The snow was softly falling from the sky. Flash ran through the streets of Central City with a million watt smile on his face. It was his favorite time of the year. The snowflakes tickled his face. His cheeks were quickly becoming as red as his costume. _

_This time always gave him such hope. _

"_It's in the coldest of times, that we need the warmth most of all." _

_The words of his loving grandmother still echoed in his heart, even after all these years. He owed her everything, and he'd never forget her. The joy in his heart spread down through his legs, right down to his feet. He felt like he was running on cloud nine._

_The Central City Orphanage came into view as he slowed himself back down to normal speed. He opened the door and walked down the hall to Susan's office. Or rather, it was Lauren's now. No matter how many years passed, he'd still consider it as hers. _

_Flash knocked and waited by the door. _

"_Oh! Hi, Flash! Come on in," called Lauren as she continued to fix some papers on her desk._

_Though Susan, Lauren's mother, knew that Wally was the Flash. They both agreed that it was better that Lauren didn't know. But that didn't make her any less part of his family, then anyone else…He just had to mind his mouth and not call her Laur. or the jig would be up._

"_Hello, a pleasure as always Miss Thyme." _

_He gave her wink and looked around for a place to sit._

_Lauren was never known as the most organized of people. There were papers and folders strewn all over the place._

"_Uhh…I seem to vaguely remember a bean bag chair in here somewhere…or did the monster that lives in here eat it?"_

_Lauren blew a piece of her hair out of the way as she came up from behind her desk._

"_Har-har. I'm not in the mood for fun and games today, Flash."_

_He gave her a pout._

"_But…its Christmas Eve…fun is a must!"_

"_Not this Christmas I'm afraid…"_

_She sat tiredly back down at her desk, and placed her head in her hands._

_Wally had never seen her look so down. It was breaking his heart._

"_Lau-Miss Thyme. What's wrong? I've…never seen you this down before…"_

_Lauren let out a watery chuckle as tears began to slowly roll down her face._

"_It's…just…this is the first time this happened to me. I mean my mom said it had happened to her once or twice on her watch….but I never…Wally's going to be devastated that they're gone!"_

_Flash felt his blood run cold._

_Lauren seemed to collect herself then. She looked up and saw the neural look Flash was giving her._

"_Oh Flash, I'm sorry. I just have no idea how to deal with this! I've never had someone run away before. And Matt, Elena, and Danny were the last ones I'd ever thought to do such a thing!"_

_Wally felt his heart freeze right then and there. Matt, Elena, and Danny were known as the inseparable trio. All three of them were old, by adoption standards with the youngest, Danny, being nine years old._

_Though 'Flash' only stopped by the orphanage once a year. Wally West would come by quite frequently, to help Lauren out with events for the kids. As time passed, the trio had become good friends with Wally. They looked up to him, knowing that he had grown up there too. He was their hope. And they had confided in him that their greatest fear was being stuck in the orphanage forever. Matt, Elena, and Danny so desperately wanted a family, so they had made their own. _

_The last time he visited was three weeks ago. The formation and gathering of the new League members had kept him away up until now. They seemed to be in high spirits the last time he saw them. They were even talking about Flash coming to see them at Christmas. What on earth changed?_

"_Are? Are you sure they ran away?"_

"_Oh, that's right. You knew them too. None of the kids saw anything. They just woke up one morning and noticed all their things were gone. I've called the police in on it. They said it sounded like a text book runaway. Right now, they're on the missing persons list. But with it snowing and all, I can't help but worry. All the kids are depressed too. They always looked to Matt, Elena, and Danny for guidance."_

_They hadn't run away. Wally didn't know how, but he knew it to the depths of his soul._

"_Well…Lauren what do you say we go see the kids, I'll say hi, then I'll search every nook and cranny of Central City for them."_

"_Oh Flash! Thank you."_

_Lauren grabbed him by the shoulders and gave him a big hug._

"_I'll try my best. And I'll never stop looking for them. You have my word, Lauren."_

_The two held one another until they felt strong enough to face the kids._

_

* * *

_

_Flash had just started his search. The soft snowflakes that had tickled his face before, now sliced his skin like cold knives. He had looked every where, had questioned everyone. The kids were gone without a trace._

_All of a sudden, the scenery shifted around him._

_He was in a dark warehouse. He could desperate screams all around him. _

_He looked down. His mask and costume had disappeared. In their place were his lab coat and work clothes._

_Wally's breathing sped up as he tried to make sense of what was going on._

"_Wall,y help us!"_

_Wally turned and saw a fourteen year old girl with dark curly hair tied to a chair, next to her was Matt with his crop of red hair. His normally warm brown eyes filled with pain. _

_He remembered that Matt had just turned thirteen not long before he disappeared. Danny was next to Matt. His straight raven hair covering his green eyes._

"_Guys! You'r-"_

_Wally stopped when he realized that he couldn't move. _

_His eyes slowly looked down at his legs. _

_He watched in horror as he saw his legs turning gray and lifeless right before his eyes._

_He was turning to stone._

"_WALLY!" they screamed as he franticly tried to reach them._

_He saw a dark shadow grow from behind them. Hovering… waiting to strike._

_Wally toppled over and landed on his chest, the stone had crept up to his chest. It then split and began to run up his arms._

_He was helpless. He couldn't move. He couldn't save them!_

"_WALLY," called out a voice as the stone began to climb up his neck._

"_WALLY!" _

_At least it would end soon._

"_WALLY!"_

_The stone crept over his mouth, making its way to his nose._

"_WALLY, WAKE UP __**NOW**__!!!!"_

Wally's eyes burst open.

_BRUCE._

* * *

Wally awoke coughing and sputtering for air. He held a hand to his chest, it felt like his heart was going burst. He was shaking so much that he was actually vibrating.

"Wally! Kid, calm down. It was a dream."

"_No not just a dream. A memory AND a dream."_

"A living nightmare's more like it," he whispered as his body finally began to slow down.

Bruce was kneeling next to his bed. He looked very worried.

"Wally, I'm sorry to have to do this to you. But I need you in the cave, right now. It's urgent."

His eyes narrowed at Bruce.

"_Bats WANTS me in the cave? This is BAD."_

"What's wrong? Did you finally get a break in the animal testing case?"

Bruce bowed his head with a depressed sigh.

"I'll show you in the cave. Hurry up and get dressed. I want you downstairs in five minutes."

His voice still held its commanding quality, but it felt strained somehow.

Wally pushed his sheets aside and reached for his cane. He was incredibly stiff from the workout Bruce put him through yesterday.

Now it was 3 a.m. and he could barely move. But he forced himself to anyway. This was no time to shuffle and moan. Something was going on and he was going to find out what it was.

* * *

**-Bruce's POV-**

"This…this can't be right!" said Wally for what seemed like the thousandth time that night. Bruce told Wally everything that had happened. The link in his mask had recorded the entire meeting. The two men played it over and over again searching for answers.

Finding it a dead end, Bruce confronted Wally about the letter. He was still staring at it in shock. His skin paled as he saw the blood and shook his head in disbelief.

"I-What the hell does this have to do with animal testing?" asked Wally truly baffled.

"I have no idea. Do you really know these people Wally?"

Wally proceeded to tell Bruce about his connection to the three orphaned children.

As Bruce heard the story, he began the pale as well. They could both feel that this mystery was going to lead them to something truly sinister.

"_I feel like I should have made the connection already. It's almost as if my mind can even conceive of it. I think Wally's feeling the same way too."_

He looked at the kid. His face was the picture of misery.

"So it's been six months since you last saw them?"

Wally just nodded his head, looking as if he had gone into some dazed state.

"_Okay, looks like I'll have to be the one to get us back on track."_

"Wally," stated Bruce in his usual serious tone, "Run the blood on the letter through the DNA analyzer. Something tells me it was placed there on purpose."

"Huh?" asked Wally as if coming out of a daze.

As Bruce's words sunk in, Wally's eyes widened.

"You're right. There was hardly any blood at the warehouse scene. They must have known that and deliberately put it on the paper. Knowing that you'd test it!"

Bruce nodded his head. The kid was starting to get his head back into the game.

"While you focus on that, I'm going to do a research on this, 'Dr. Milo' character. I have a feeling that he's the key to all this."

Wally nodded his head and got right down to work.

* * *

It took nearly and hour and a half, but Bruce's search finally paid off.

"Got it," he called out. Wally left the DNA analyzer running and came up behind Bruce.

"What have you got?"

Bruce cleared his throat and read off the screen.

"Dr. Filbert Milo- kicked out of Arizona University for his unorthodox experimentation on augmenting animals with human DNA. Apparently he was trying to give a pig the super hearing of a bat and the mind of a human or something of the like."

Wally summarized the rest of the article.

"Apparently, not only were all his experiments failures, but the school board voted that his tests had no practical use and cut off his grant money. He hasn't been seen in nearly two years. His whereabouts are completely unknown. So he was experimenting on human and-"

Wally's breath caught in his throat. He turned to Bruce with unbridled horror in his eyes. Bruce felt heart clench. He knew just by looking at Wally what he was thinking. It was too terrible.

"_Oh god not that. Please don't let us be right."_

The beeping of the analyzer broke their concentration. The two looked back at the device as it printed its results.

Bruce and Wally ran to the machine hoping to be proven wrong.

Bruce had reached it first. Wally was still stiff and the cane wasn't helping all that much either. Bruce's eyes scanned the paper and Wally held his breath.

Suddenly he tightly shut his eyes, his left hand clenched and unclenched as he tried to control his rage.

Wally grabbed the paper out of Bruce's hand.

Bruce began to pace as Wally read aloud.

"Conclusive: Human DNA augmented with genetically altered animal DNA. Helix structure: not permanently altered…."

Bruce pounded his fist into the wall. The impact echoed through the cave stirring the bats up into frenzy.

"He…kidnapped them," whispered Wally on the verge of tears, "He knew they'd just be listed as runaways. That nobody would look for them…then he-"

Bruce let out vicious growl and pounded the wall again.

They both knew what Dr. Milo had done. He wasn't experimenting on animals, but on children. He kidnapped them and experimented with their DNA, turning them into hybrid monsters. For what purpose, neither man could even fathom. But one thing was for sure. They were going to stop this man from harming one more innocent. No matter what.

"I'll go to the meeting place tomorrow night," said Bruce with conviction. He was still facing the wall. Wally could see the tension in his back.

"I'm coming too."

"No. You can't."

Wally pounded his fist into the metallic lab table. Leaving a crater sized dent in its wake.

"I HAVE EVERY RIGH-"

Bruce turned around to face Wally. His face was stone, cold and unmoving.

"You're still not up to it, Wally. You can monitor the whole event on the video-link from my cowl. But it's too much of a risk, if something goes wrong."

Wally looked away. As if shamed that he had lost his temper like that. Deep down, Wally knew he was right.

"Okay," Wally sighed, clearly not liking it.

"Good. Now…let's get some sleep. We have a long day ahead after tomorrow."

Bruce and Wally looked each other in the eye, knowing that neither would get any sleep. Neither would rest until the children were safe again. For all their differences, Bruce and Wally held one central, underlying belief:

NO ONE hurt children on their watch. _Ever._

So for once, they were in perfect agreement…. Dr. Milo was going to pay….. _Dearly_.

* * *

Author's Note: "…said the spider to the fly……"

_Hehehe…_

To Be Continued.


	18. Day 6, Week 2: Clash of Perspectives

Disclaimer: So did everyone like the twist? Hehehe…guess what? I don't own Dr. Milo. The first person who can guess where he's from gets a cookie…But Matt, Elena, and Danny are all mine so no touchie! Now onto the fic….

* * *

**-Day 6, Week 2: Clash of Perspectives-**

**-Alfred's POV-**

Both Bruce and Wally had woken up late in the day. The two ate their lunch in relative silence. Alfred looked curiously at the two. It hadn't been this quiet since Wally first came to the manor. It was in a word…unnerving.

After twenty minutes, Alfred had had enough.

"Master Bruce, if you're quite done staring at your food, I'd like to clean up the table."

Bruce started at the sudden break in the silence. He shook himself out of his daze.

"Sorry, Alfred….Wally, I want you downstairs in five minutes. We still have a lot of training to do."

With that he got up, scraped the remainder of his food into the garbage disposal, placed the dish in the sink, and left the kitchen.

Alfred's attention shifted to the equally troubled red head still in his sights. He was playing with is potato chips, having eaten even less then Bruce. Something was terribly wrong with that.

"Master Wally."

"Huh?" asked Wally as he turned to look up at Alfred.

Alfred put his hands on the table and leaned in to stare Wally straight in the eye.

"Master Bruce wants you downstairs in five minutes to train, which means you have three in which to tell me what is going on."

Wally blushed a bit at being so easy to read.

"Al, I don't think Br-"

"I know. That's why _you're_ going to tell me," said Alfred in a voice that allowed no room for debate.

Wally sighed and proceeded to relay the events that transpired the previous night.

* * *

**-Bruce's POV-**

After once again completing the chair exercise, of which he had now made it up to two hundred pounds of weight, Bruce suggested a fighting exercise where Wally would face him using no speed whatsoever.

The two bowed at each other, and shifted into fighting stances.

Neither man had spoken very much to the other, since last night's discussion.

Bruce knew it was too much to hope for it to last.

"Hey, Bats…" Wally said uncertainly as he blocked Bruce's punches with ease. Even with his powers turned down, he was still a good fighter.

"What?" asked Bruce as he suddenly kicked out with a leg attack.

"Alfred cornered me upstairs, I told him what was going on," said Wally as he dodged to the right, avoiding Bruce's leg. He quickly caught the punch Bruce followed up with to his gut.

Bruce spun himself out of his grasp and started to attack Wally's left side.

"You had no right to tell him that," said Bruce as he landed a swift kick to his knees, knocking Wally legs right out from under him.

Wally fell backwards and landed with a 'Huh!'

"Excuse me?" asked Wally annoyed as he stood up and once again took up his stance, "I had no _right_? Do you mind elaborating on that?"

Bruce sent out two jabs to Wally's right, as he kicked out with is left to hit Wally's side.

"I'd rather he not know about this case. You shouldn't have gone behind my back and told him."

Wally surprised him, when he caught the kick to his side. Then Wally shifted to the offensive, letting loose a few punches of his own, slowly driving Bruce back towards the wall.

"_Please,_ like you haven't done the same to me."

Wally kicked out and struck Bruce in the abdomen. He then dropped down into a crouch and leapt out with a roundhouse kick to Bruce's legs.

"What does that mean?" countered Bruce, angry at Wally having caught him off guard. He easily regained his footing and avoided Wally's kick just in time. He spun, landing behind Wally and gave him a crack between the shoulder blades.

"Gah!" Wally grimaced in pain as he ground out, "_Ray_, you went behind my back and questioned him about my past, I know you did."

Wally reached out and grabbed Bruce's arm before he could retract it. He pulled and flipped the dark haired man down onto the mat.

"I didn't want you or the others to know," said Wally clearly irritated.

Bruce flipped up onto his feet and repeatedly jabbed at Wally's left side.

"But by not telling us, you put yourself and not to mention others in danger. What if you began to disappear during a battle? There would have been no way to reverse it!"

As Wally tried to block one of Bruce's punches, Bruce caught his arm and locked it behind his back.

Wally called over his shoulder, "Like you're one to lecture about keeping secrets!"

He kicked back at Bruce with his leg. Bruce had loosened the grip on his arm enough that he could grab Bruce and threw him off his back.

Bruce caught himself and landed in a crouched stance.

"That's different!"

His hands already working to fend off Wally's persistent blows.

"_How_?" yelled Wally as he wound up to deliver another punch. Bruce dodged out of the way. Wally lost his footing and fell onto the mat. He gave the mat a light jab of frustration and looked back over his shoulder at Bruce.

"Don't you think I saw that look in your eyes? I've had to deal with that look my entire life, the one of pity."

Wally spun around and began to drive at Bruce again.

"It wasn't pity," said Bruce as he blocked the young man's blows.

"Then what was it, Bruce?"

Bruce ducked low and thrust his palm into Wally's abdomen, knocking the man back.

"Understanding. I know this is about the kids, Wally. You feel a connection to them, but you can't let those feelings cloud your judgment."

Wally slid back and skidded to a stop in a crouched position. Bruce then went on the offensive, driving Wally back into the wall.

"I'd rather allow myself to feel those emotions, then be like you and deny they exist at ALL!"

This time it was Wally who grabbed Bruce's arm and locked it behind his back.

Then Wally leaned in and spoke in his ear.

"I had to make that choice too you know….to shut out the pain. To drive everyone and everything away. To not only spare them, but also myself more pain…does that sound familiar?"

Bruce sharply elbowed Wally in the gut and flipped him over his head with a roar.

"Please like _YOU_ could ever understand the _**COST **_or the _**BURDEN **__**I BEAR**__!_"

Wally landed hard on the mat, he grabbed at his ankle with a short gasp, but he ignored it and pressed on. He stared up at Bruce from his position on the floor.

"You're not the only one who's lost _EVERYTHING, _Bruce! I could have closed myself off and never let anyone in again. But I _DIDN'T_. If I had, the evils of the world would have won. Denying yourself laughter, happiness, and the smallest amount of joy, _WON'T BRING THEM BACK. _"

A shiver ran through Bruce from head to toe. Why was he even listening to this nonsense? How could _Wally_ of all people understand him at all? It was ludicrous! It was INFURATING!

It was-He was-

"_Damn him. Just-DAMN him! Him and his kindness. Him and his ability to care about everyone! To love and let love, to hope even in the darkest situation. To laugh when all things are their bleakest. OF BEING EVERYTHING I CAN NEVER BE!"_

Cold, hard resolve covered his face. The likes of which that hadn't graced his features since Wally had arrived at the manor. His cracking walls suddenly strengthen ten fold. He wouldn't let down his guard again.

"This_ lesson_ is over," stated Bruce with a frigid glare and left the cave.

Wally looked on with a forlorn expression on his face that clearly said, _Oh no. What have I done now?_

He looked down, grasping his ankle on the verge of tears. He had gone too far. And he had no idea how to make it right again.

* * *

After the training fiasco, Bruce locked himself in the library. He didn't want to see or hear from anyone. Too many thoughts were still racing through his head. And try as he might, emotions that he thought he had long since come to terms with began to haunt him again.

Bruce grabbed the newspaper, hoping that he could find something in it to take his mind off of those troubling thoughts.

He was jarred from his musings by a knock at the door.

"Go away. I don't which to speak to anyone right now."

Bruce heard the lock click open and someone step in.

"Sorry to disturb you, Sir…But I believe you and I need to have a chat."

Alfred closed the door and locked it behind him.

Bruce really didn't like the looks of this. Alfred had that reprimanding look in his eye. The one where he'd give Bruce his ten cents and then some, boss or not.

He could feel his insides quivering like a child who angered their parent.

"_This is bad."_

Bruce tried to brush Alfred off.

"I'm a little busy reading this article at the mo-"

Alfred snatched the paper out on his hands and smacked him across the head with it.

"OW! What was-"

"You _know_ very well what that was for young man! I have _never_ been this disappointed in you in my entire life! Do you have _ANY_ idea what you did to that poor boy?"

Bruce snorted, "I take it that you know what happened in the cave then. Please, Wally can take it. I'm sure he's fine."

Alfred was a man known for his incredible patience, but there were times, like this one, that even his cool temper could be flared. When it finally reaches its limit, hell hath no fury equal to his. It was a frightening sight to behold.

Alfred struck him with a glare so cold Bruce physically shivered.

"He has large bruises all over his body. Not to mention, you _severely_ sprained his right ankle. He just got out of two full leg casts, _What is wrong with you?_"

"I-"

"Don't you dare even try to make up an excuse, _Master _Bruce. I heard every single word of that fight. You both were screeching at the top of your lungs. I think the Watchtower could hear you from space. Now I think you both owe each other an apology."

"But-"

"No 'buts,' Sir. You both were acting irrational because this case has a lot of meaning for you both. You struck each other's cords this time. It just goes to show how much you've learned about each other in Master Wally's short time here."

Bruce averted his eyes in shame. He _had_ learned a lot about Wally from his stay, it only made sense that Wally would come to understand him better too. No matter how closely he guarded himself, Wally could see through his façade. Even at the start of the League, he never backed down from Batman. He guessed it was because Wally had felt similar emotions to Bruce's in his life.

Alfred put his hand on Bruce's shoulder.

"He wasn't wrong you know," whispered Alfred, clearly referring to what Wally had said to him during their training.

Bruce sadly looked down. He was really ashamed of his actions now.

He gave Alfred a sharp nod of response.

"Despite having had similar tragedies in your lives, you both decided to handle them differently. I think you both have a lot to learn from each other……But despite all your differences, you both have one very important thing in common," said Alfred confidently.

"What's that?"

"You both care about people, more than anyone else I've ever known. At the heart, you are both the same."

Alfred turned to leave the room.

As he unlocked the door he said, "You can stay in here if you wish….shut yourself away again….I won't stop you, Sir. It's not my place…. But…if you decide against it…Wally went to the roof I believe. He said he needed some fresh air…I think he wanted to see the sunset…it's nearly eight o'clock, whatever choice you make, please make it soon…"

With that, Alfred left Bruce alone to ponder his thoughts.

* * *

**-Wally's POV-**

Wally sat on top of the railing that ran along the roof of the manor house. He was leaning against the back of a carved stone gargoyle, watching the blazing sun sink bellow the horizon. The warmth and fresh air seemed to help soothe the pain in his heart. He closed his eyes, letting the rays of energy heal his very being.

He had no right to say those things to Bruce. He was sure Bats hated him now. How could he be so stupid?

"_I let my worry for the kids get carried away. It just spilled over. Bruce was right. I'm letting it affect me too much. I can't help them if I continue acting like this."_

Then he heard a creak from the door. He didn't even have to look, to know who it was. He took a deep breath as the man approached the railing next to him and leaned his elbows on it. Wally took another deep breath…thinking of what he should say….

Amazingly, Bruce was the first one to speak.

"So…Alfred told me that you twisted you ankle."

Wally saw Bruce's eyes wonder over to his latest injury. Alfred had wrapped it for him, but it still ached on occasion.

"Well…it hurts a whole heck of a lot less then the broken legs did."

Wally let out a light laugh and noticed Bruce's face fall, looking almost ashamed.

"_Huh? What the heck's going on with him? I thought he came out here to reprimand me."_

"Bats….you okay?"

"I'm…sorry Wally."

He blinked in surprise.

"_What on earth's he sorry for? I'm the one who yelled at him!"_

"Bruce…I'm fine. My ankle will be alright in a few days."

Bruce sighed and rubbed his hands up and down his face.

"No…well yeah I'm sorry about that too…but that's not what I was talking about."

Now Wally was thoroughly confused.

"Okay…and that would be…"

Bruce choked down what appeared to be a small laugh.

"Getting mad at you, because you were right."

"…"

"Huh, I finally found a way to shut you up!"

Wally didn't respond to the jab though. He just continued to stare at Bruce like he had never seen him before.

"I- Bats I'm the one who should be apologizing, you were right. I was getting carried away because those kids are in trouble and I have no way to help them."

To this Bruce sighed and turned toward the sunset with a faraway look in his eye.

"Well, maybe we both have something to be sorry for. But- you were right when you said all those things about me Wally. I- I just never had anyone actually figure it out before…why I am the way I am."

Understanding then graced Wally's eyes as he turned away from Bruce and looked at the sunset.

"Besides," continued Bruce with a smirk, "You couldn't even figure out Shayera and John were dating. I always thought you were too dense to pick up on emotions."

Wally let out a 'Hey!' and folded his arms across his chest.

After a few more minutes looking at the sunset, he answered,

"I guess I just have special insight into those types of emotions…because I've felt them myself…"

"…Insight does come at a heavy price doesn't it…"

"Yes, it certainly does…."

The two then watched in silence as the last few rays glittered over the horizon.

"Wally…"

"Yes?"

"How do you do it?"

"…Do what, Bruce?"

"Stay positive. Even when it's so dark you can't see?"

Wally felt his breath catch it his throat. Was Bruce actually asking him for advice?

Suddenly he felt his heart warm, maybe just maybe, Bats was actually starting to respect him. He cleared his throat so his emotion couldn't be heard when he answered,

"Well, it's just something that Granny Flash taught me…"

Bruce nodded knowingly.

"And that saying would be?" he asked with a bit of a smile.

"Fate is ironic. So much so, that if you didn't laugh, you'd cry. So laugh all you can, because as long as there's still light somewhere, the darkness can never truly win…."

"……Your grandmother was an amazing person."

"That she was indeed."

The two looked off into the darkening sky until Bruce spoke again.

"We'd better get ready. It's almost time to go meet the kids."

"Right," Wally said with a nod. Bruce helped him down from his seat on the railing and held his arm as he limped back to the door.

"You can't come with me Wally, especially now with your ankle like that. You can watch via-the Bat-computer. I'll have my headset on."

"Sounds like a plan to me, Bats. Let's go help those kids."

The two then made their way down to the cave, with determination and hope renewed. And prepared themselves for the battle they knew was coming.

* * *

Author's Note: So how did the fight scene flow? I'm gearing up for all the action I'll have to write soon. It'll be my first attempt ever at it so I hope it turns out as well as I have it plotted out in my head.

Next Time: "Whispers in the Dark"- Batman meets the trio, answers are given as more questions arise.

The next chapter is going to be a week or so guys. I have some important family things to take care of. Well hope you all liked the chapter! As always please read and review! Reviews and views make me happy and trust me, the Mists needs the happy right now. Thanks for all your reviews so far. More story goodness is yet to come!


	19. Whispers in the Dark

Disclaimer: The title of this chapter comes from the song, "Whispers in the Dark," by Skillet. It's one of my all time favorite songs. It just rocks. All right! This fic is almost at TWO HUNDRED reviews! Thank you all so much! It's more than I could have ever hoped for! Now hang onto your hats here's more of the fic!

* * *

**-Whispers in the Dark-**

**-Bruce's POV-**

The Bat-plane touched down on the roof of an abandoned building on the outskirts of Gotham. It was nearing midnight as Batman stepped out into the night air. Out there, past the stark glow of the electric lights, the stars shined with all their glory.

The Bat-plane was parked several blocks from 37th and Norrington Road. Throughout his years of experience, Batman had learned that keeping a means of escape hidden was essential. Especially when one could be walking into a potential trap.

Batman took one last look at the stars as he unhooked his grappling-gun from his belt. He then reached up and touched the side of his cowl near his right ear.

"Batman to Flash, I'm going in."

"All right, take it away."

Batman launched the hook and swung off into the night.

* * *

Right as the clock struck twelve, Batman alighted down to the meeting place. A small make shift shack stood on top of the roof. It was made of old plywood and plastic bags. The poorly hinged door flapped open in the wind. Batman squinted to see inside the structure.

He pulled out his batarang and called Flash on the communicator.

"Flash, I need you to do a scan of the structure, like you did at the warehouse. Search for any life signs."

"Right on it…..okay, there are three life signs inside the structure. But that's all I got."

"Expand the search to a mile radius."

"Nope. Only those three. The rest of the immediate area is clear."

Batman gave a small nod.

"All right then, I'm going in. Keep surveillance up and notify me of anything suspicious."

"You got it."

With a hardened face, Batman stepped through the door.

* * *

**-Wally's POV-**

Wally watched the room carefully as Bruce walked through the doorway. He was really nervous about this. If it was indeed the kids Bats had agreed to meet, then why on earth hide?

"Master Wally," said a voice from behind.

Wally turned around to see Alfred standing behind him, apparently also watching the screen.

"Yeah?"

"I believe your wearing a hole into the floor."

Wally blinked and looked down at his left leg.

He blushed as he noticed the smoke rising off of his shoe. Apparently he had been bouncing his leg up and down so fast that he was _literally _making a hole in the floor.

"_Not to mention setting my sneaker on fire. Damn nervous tick!" _

Wally just sighed and rubbed his hand across in eyes.

"Sorry Alfred, I'm just really worried…"

"Understandable, Sir. But let me remind you that Master Bruce has done this for years on his own. He will be alright this time as well."

"Yeah…I know, but can't help but worry…"

Wally looked back at the screen just in time to see something fly at Bruce from the left.

"Bats! Left!"

Batman dodged the flying barb easily.

Suddenly a voice called out, "Elena! Stop! It's Batman!"

A hissing sound could be heard from overhead.

"Sshh-it! Ssssorrry, Batman. Sssss..wasss a reflexss."

Wally saw the trench coated person Batman had described walk into frame from the right.

A 'thump' and a slithering sound could be heard from the left.

The figure in the trench coat then cleared his throat.

"Hello, Batman. I take it that you analyzed the letter…"

* * *

**-Bruce's POV-**

Batman refolded his batarang back into his palm. He was going to keep an eye on the one in the trench coat. He was fast, and he wasn't going to have his weapon stolen from him again.

"Yes, I did."

The person in the trench coat then sighed in relief.

"Good. That means we can stop hiding in the shadows."

He reached up and pulled off his hat, revealing two pointed ears with black tips. The fox like ears sat atop a crop of bright red hair. The boy then removed the trench coat he was wearing. Bright red fur covered most of his body. His feet were elongated and his t-shirt and jeans were in tatters. The inside of his ears and neck was covered in white hair. On his hands and feet, the fur was black. The boy looked down at his feet, almost embarrassed to look the hero in the eye.

Batman then noticed a long red tail with a tuff of white at the end, sway behind the boy.

"_Poor kid. He's almost more animal then human now."_

Batman heard Wally gasp over the communicator, _"Oh Matt, I'm so sorry."_

Suddenly Batman was kicked out of his revive when he heard an angered hiss come from his left.

"Sssstop acting likesss itsss your fault Mattssss! Itssss wassss Milosss!"

A cobra like woman slithered out from the shadows. Her eyes were gold and silted, her teeth formed like fangs. The hood of the cobra covered the top of her head. Her long dark hair flowed out the sides of the hood and was clapped at the bottoms with golden bands.

The top of her torso had the normal feminine curve of a human's body. Though her arms were still there, her legs had fused together into a long slithering tail. A shirt and long skirt graced her form as she slid over to Matt.

"I know that Elena!" said Matt as the young girl approached him.

Elena rolled her golden eyes.

"Pleassse! Will you sssstop withss the guilt tripssing already?!"

Batman looked on confused as the two hybrid kids continued their verbal battle having apparently forgotten all about him being there.

"_They have the attention span of flies…no wonder their friends with Flash."_

Batman was about to call them to focus when he heard a sigh ring out right next to his left ear. He turned and started when he saw a dark haired kid, covered in gray fur, dangling upside down next to his head.

"They always fight like this. I swear if they would just admit they liked each other I'd have fewer headaches."

"WE DO NOT!" yelled the two at the spiderboy and went right back to their argument.

The kid just blinked his four green glowing eyes and groaned, "There are just times I need to hit my head repeatedly on something with these two….Hi, I'm Danny by the way." said the kid with a wave.

"The crazy cobra lady is Elena, and red fuzzball is Matt."

"FUZZBALL?!"

"CRAZY COBRA LADY?!"

Both combatants turned to the spiderboy in the long sleeved shirt and cargo shorts with murderous intent.

"Huzzah! Now that I have your attention again, I would like to point out that BATMAN IS HERE TO HELP US SO QUIT WASTING TIME! Dipwads…"

The two came back to their senses and looked away from each other ashamed.

Batman's headset crackled to life then. "You know what's sad? This is the way the League works too…."

Bruce pictured John, Shayera, and Wally in one of their usual conversations in the common room of the Watchtower.

"….You have a point…" muttered Batman into his communicator as the three composed themselves and got back on track.

Batman cleared his throat.

"Okay kids, now that we are back on track. I would appreciate if one of you explained what exactly Dr. Milo's plans are for you."

Matt sighed and rubbed his head.

"I wish we knew, Batman."

Elena gently placed her hand on Matt's shoulder.

Then she looked up at Batman, "What we know isss that for nearly two yearsss Dr. Milo hasss been taking children from orphanagesss around the world. He leavesss enough evidencsse behind to make it appear likehss your average runawayss."

Matt sat down and used his right leg to scratch behind his ear. He continued for Elena.

"He takes kids here and there every couple of months so no one gets suspicious. Mostly he grabs kids from Gotham and Metropolis, we don't know why though."

"_It's probably because the runaway rate is so high in large cities. He knew it would go unnoticed. Damn this guy, he really thought it through."_

"Umm….Batman?" asked Danny as he dropped down from the ceiling, "Did…did you talk to Flash then?"

Solemn expressions fell on the kids' faces, apparently saddened that Flash hadn't come along as well.

Bruce could hear Wally's sorrowful groan over the communicator.

"Yes, I did. He's been very worried about all of you. He…he never believed you ran away, and he's been searching for you three ever since."

This news seemed to perk them up a little, until Matt's ears drooped and asked,

"Where is he then?"

"…_Maybe I should have let Wally come. He's better at this than I am…"_

"He was hurt two weeks ago. A piece of masonry fell on him and he broke both his legs."

The three gasped and ganged up on him, spouting out random questions all at once.

"Is he alright?!"

"How did that happen?!"

"Who hurt Flassshh?!"

"ENOUGH!" Batman yelled.

The kids jump five feet in the air and backed away from him shaking with fear.

"_Great. Now I've scared the crap out of them."_

"BATS! How could you?! They're scared enough as it is YOU DON'T HAVE TO SCREAM AT THEM TOO!" yelled Flash through the ear piece.

Batman sighed, "Okay, I'll apologize to them, happy Flash?!"

"Flasssshh?" questioned Elena as she slid forward in front of the two boys.

"_Great…"_

"I'm in contact with him. He's watching this whole event from a secure location through the video recorder in my cowl. Flash is almost completely healed, but not enough that he could come with me tonight….okay?"

This information calmed the three down right away.

"Well…as long as he's okay…" said Matt as the others nodded.

"Kids, listen, we're running out of time. Milo will notice if you're gone for much longer."

"He's right," said Danny as he walked up to Batman, his extra set of gray hairy arms were folded in front of him as told the rest of their tale.

"Milo's been using some kid of DNA mutagen on us. Apparently he's not the one who made it. He's just using it to experiment on us."

Matt snorted, "He's not intelligent enough to make it on his own. Milo's a crackpot and an idiot, how he ever became a doctor I'll never know…"

Batman paused at this, "Where does he get the mutagen from?"

"Hisss benefactor," hissed Elena as she slithered next to Danny.

"Benefactor? You mean someone's paying him to do these experiments on you?"

"_Most illegal scientists steal to support their crazy schemes. But this one actually has buyer? What on earth could this be used for?"_

"This just keeps getting better and better doesn't?" exhaled Wally in an exasperated tone, "Who in the _heck _would even _want_ to do something like this?"

"Someone not in their right mind that's for sure," muttered Batman loud enough for just Wally to hear.

Matt rubbed his head with his paw like hand.

"All we know is that Dr. Milo calls him, 'Ringmaster.'"

"Have any of you ever seen this man?"

All three shook their heads no.

The Dark Knight could feel a massive headache coming on.

"Okay, so where exactly are you three being held?"

"It'sss and old circussss ssstorage building…about fifteen milesss from here." The drained tone in Elena voice was very evident.

"We have to hurry, Batman. A lot of the kids are getting really sick. If one strain of DNA mutagen doesn't work, he just tries another. He finally found a way to make it stick a few weeks ago…we're some of his first _Batch of Freaks_ as he puts it …a few more treatments….and it'll permanent…" the sorrow in Matt's voice was so deep that it actually hurt hearing it.

Danny started crying, "How will we be able to live like this?"

Elena curled her arms around him in a hug as he wept on her shoulder.

Batman tried, but he couldn't keep the emotion out of his voice when he said,

"It's not going to come to that. We're putting a stop to this tomorrow night…."

Hope filled their eyes as Batman formulated a plan with them to strike the circus warehouse the next night.

* * *

Batman stood on the roof of the meeting place. The Bat-plane came down and landed, he got in slowly, deep in thought.

As he sighed, Wally spoke up over the communicator.

"You think we'll be able to pull this off Bats?"

Batman rubbed his eyes as he replied, "We have to kid. That's all there is to it. I want you to get some rest now, Flash. I'll be back in a bit. First thing in the morning, we'll get together everyone we can to help. Something tells me this isn't going to be an easy fight."

"I'll go to bed when you get back. You're so tried you'll probably smack into a skyscraper."

Bruce let out a tired chuckle.

"_Always thinking of others."_

"This plane _does_ have an autopilot feature you know?"

Bruce could almost feel the kid's smile over the line.

"Well yeah…but I thought you'd like some company on the trip home…"

Bruce smirked at this and asked, "And just how are you going to do that?"

The speaker crackled for a minute and then suddenly he heard his own voice singing, "Ammm I bllluuue? Am I bllluuue?-"

"_Wally_…when I get back you're **DEAD**, you understand me _**DEAD**_!" the Dark Knight growled.

Wally laughed, "Just make sure you get back in one piece, okay?"

"The thought of being able to _kill you_ is incentive enough for _twelve_ people!"

"Right on, Wally-out."

Bruce shook his head in wonder.

"_I swear that kid's not right in the head…but in his case…I believe that's a good thing."_

* * *

**-Unknown POV-**

Somewhere in a dark room, a man flipped off a viewing screen.

"Showtime," he whispered as he grabbed his top hat and cane.

"Let the games begin…"

* * *

To Be Continued…


	20. Day 7: Enter the Circus

Disclaimer: The title of this chapter comes from another song, "Enter the Circus" is by Christina Aguilera but not sung by her. I don't know who it is, but it's a guy that's for sure. It can be found on the Back to Basics CD, Disk 2. If you are a fan of Swing, Jazz, and the Blues with a fresh millennium twist, this is the album for you. And boy, does the power of her voice ever shine this time. Anyway, to the fic!

* * *

**-Day 7: Enter the Circus-**

**-Wally's POV-**

"_What on earth are we going to do?"_

Nothing was going their way today. It all started when they contacted the Watchtower first thing in the morning. It turned out that a thermal storm had kicked up over the ether sea of Therale 3. Thus delaying the return of half the League, who were now stranded on the planet for at least three more days. To make matters worse, an earthquake had hit Japan. So most of the leftover personal were sent to help, leaving very few able to lend their assistance.

It got to the point that Batman told Mr. Terrific that he'd take anyone, _anyone_ available that could be of some help.

* * *

****

-Flashback-

_Mr. Terrific sighed, "Batman…I only have one person available. I understand how serious this situation is…I'd come down there and help you myself if I could, but I can't leave the tower in his care and I think you'd throw him out of a window the second he got there."_

"_Does he have superpowers?" asked the Dark Knight._

"_Well…yeah…"_

"_Then send him to our location as soon as possible, Batman-out."_

* * *

Bruce then called an emergency meeting of the Bat-family. Barbara, Dick, and Tim dropped whatever they were doing and were coming straight away. In fact, Tim was even bringing the Titans with him. Bruce didn't want to get anymore kids involved with these psychos, but Wally convinced him that they had no choice.

"_They're heroes, Bats. They've probably been fighting longer then half the people in the League have. They can take care of themselves, I'm sure of it."_

The icing on the cake came when they took an x-ray of Wally's ankle. It still wasn't healed enough. He would have to stay out of the fight.

Not that he could go even if he was well enough, because it dawned on the two heroes that John had taken Flash's suits for safe keeping. He hid them in a pocket dimension in his apartment. Lantern was worried that the _hotshot_ would put them on and go running before he was well enough. Even if he had Kilowog here to help him find it, he shuddered at the thought of having to face the wrath of John's landlady again. That mop of hers was lethal!

This also presented another problem to the team, because most of the heroes coming did not know about Wally's secret identity. So Wally and Batman decided to tell the others that he was a forensic scientist, who knew some of the kids in trouble, and was offering his help.

"_Well…it wasn't exactly a lie now was it?"_

Batman searched the net to find plans of the warehouse, while Wally mixed together some capsules of knockout gas.

"Hey Bats, you got any Sulf-"

Suddenly light filled the room. A figure appeared as the light faded.

The man puffed out his chest and said, "Never fear, Batman! The _Great _Booster Gold has come to lend you his assistance!"

"Yes, indeed! He's here to save the day!" quipped a little yellow robot that floated around his head.

Both Wally and Batman froze.

Then they slowly turned and looked at each other with identical looks that said, _"OH GOD, NO!"_

"_Jeeze! When T said he was at the bottom of the barrel, he wasn't kidding!"_

"So Batman, who are we fighting? The Riddler? Penguin….hey, who's that guy?" asked Gold as he pointed over at Wally.

"He's an associate of mine, his name's Wally. He'll be helping us on this mission," answered Batman as he went back to his typing.

"Ooookay….nice to meet you Wally, I'm Booster Gold and this is my super awesome robot, Skeets."

"Yeah…nice to meet you both…" said Wally as he shook Booster's hand a bit reluctantly.

He never really liked Booster all that much. Talking with him was looking in a mirror and seeing all his worst qualities magnified. But the thing that irked him the most about Gold was the fact that he really didn't care about the people he was trying to help.

"The others will be here soon, we'll fill everyone in when they get here. For now…I guess you could walk around the cave until the others get here."

"Oh…okay. Hey! Look Skeet's a dinosaur! Let's check it out!"

As Booster took Skeets over to the dinosaur Wally smacked himself in the head.

Something that could be compared to coughing fit was coming from Batman as he called the plans up onto the screen.

Wally just walked over to him and said, "Oh just shut up! …….I wasn't _that _bad……was I?"

Batman kept his eyes on the screen and continued typing.

Wally's eyes narrowed.

"You _so_ suck."

Batman's only response was more typing.

Then the sound of a jet landing echoed through the cave.

A voice rang out, "This is _SO _cool! We're actually in the Bat-cave! It really does exist!"

"That it does BB, that it does."

Robin led his team into the main part of the cave from the landing port.

Batman stood up and walked over to Robin.

The two got within three feet of each other and stopped.

They just stared at each other for a few minutes, until Robin said, "Batman."

To which the Dark Knight replied, "Robin."

"He is not a very warm person is he?" whispered Starfire to Raven.

"You expected Robin's father figure to be anything but cold and depressing?" was her sarcastic reply.

Star looked away slightly embarrassed at having asked a question with such an obvious answer.

"I'm…._glad_ your team could come and help as well…Nightwing and Batgirl should be here at any moment."

"Um…" started Robin clearly at a loss for words, "Sure…no problem…uh…what about Fl-"

"Flash won't be helping us on this mission. Instead I have enlisted the help of an acquaintance of mine. He will be monitoring our progress on the Bat-computer through a video-link in my cowl. His name is Wally and he's a forensics scientist, please treat him with respect."

Both Wally and Robin started at this and gave each other a look.

"_Where did that come from?"_

Wally then recovered and said waved to the kids.

"Um…Hi, I'm Wally."

The group said their hellos.

"Raven? Are you feeling alright? You appear to be quite red," questioned a concerned Starfire.

The usually pale gray pallor of her skin seemed to lighten to pink as she stared at Wally.

"I..I'm fine," said the girl averting her eyes from the red head in front of her.

Starfire gave her a questioning glance as she looked at Wally and then back to Raven.

Suddenly, she started giggling for no reason.

Raven responded to her giggling with a harsh glare that made the table behind Starfire fly into the wall.

"Jeeze! Raven watch where you're throwing things!" exclaimed Beast Boy who had turned into a bird to avoid getting knocked in the head.

Wally was thoroughly confused at what was going on with the young hero.

"_I wonder what's wrong… I hope she's not sick… She shouldn't be fighting if she's sick."_

"Are you sure you're okay Raven. You do look flushed," asked Wally as he walked up to her and placed his hand gently on her forehead.

Then her blush intensified ten fold, as her eyes rolled back into her head and she passed out.

* * *

**-Bruce's POV-**

Wally caught her as she fell.

"Raven!" exclaimed a very worried Beast Boy and Cyborg.

"_Oh he had to go and do that didn't he? Is he blind? The girl thinks he's cute. She obviously has a crush on him. Wally West, clueless as usual to the ways of the female heart."_

"All right everyone, give the poor girl some room," said Batman as he took her from Wally's arms.

Robin was laughing a bit as he tried to wake his friend up.

"_Well at least Tim gets what's going on……Should I be worried about that?"_

Batman's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of an approaching motorbike.

The Night-cycle drove up with Nightwing in front and Batgirl clinging onto his back.

Nightwing took off his helmet and slowly took in the strange scene.

He then yelled, "Dang it! We missed all the action again! Why in the heck are we always the last ones to arrive?!"

Batgirl whispered something in Nightwing's ear with a naughty smile.

He suddenly blushed and nervously fidgeted in his seat.

Then as he scratched the back of his head, he mumbled, "Okay… point made."

Raven chose that moment to stir. She awoke with very ashamed look on her face. Falling for a cute guy was really not her style…it was more Starfire's. She looked at Robin who was desperately fighting the grin that kept trying to creep onto his face.

Raven narrowed her eyes at him and growled, "If you ever mention this again, you _die_."

Robin just nodded his head as he helped her to her feet.

"Uh..guys?" asked Booster Gold walking towards the awkward scene, "So is anyone going to explain why we're all here now?"

Everyone turned toward Batman and Wally. The two started and then looked at each other with a tired sigh.

"_This is going to take a while…"_

* * *

**-Wally's POV-**

After all was said and done, Nightwing slammed his fist into the wall. Much like Bruce had when he discovered the twisted dealings of Dr. Milo.

Cyborg's bionic eye glowed a fierce red while Beast Boy looked horrified, on the verge of breaking down into tears. Raven had once again sent a table flying in rage, as Starfire's fists emitted green energy that she desperately fought to control. Batgirl cracked her knuckles as Robin extended his poll.

Booster looked positively green. He placed a hand over his mouth and ran to find some place to hurl.

Batman rubbed his forehead and Wally rolled his eyes.

"_Yes, the brave and bold, Booster Gold saves the day again... Well…at least he clearly cares about what happened to the kids. Hopefully, it'll dial down his ego a bit…"_

As he thought this, that annoying voice in his head told him that he was one to talk.

He pushed those thoughts down as he focused on the situation.

Wally cleared his throat, "Now that you all know what's going on…"

Sounds of barfing could still be heard coming from the cave's _Bat_-room.

Wally shook his head and continued, "We're giving you all a choice. This mission is going to be very dangerous. The plan is to split up into teams of two, with Batman going in solo. They may have guards that have recently been genetically altered. So be on your guard. Top priority is getting the kids to safety. End of story."

While Wally was speaking, Booster rejoined the group. He looked a _little_ better, but just barely.

Batman continued where Wally left off, "If anyone wants to back out..."

He sent Gold a telling glance as the man gulped.

"Now's the time to do it…" finished Batman as the others spoke up.

"No way!"

"We are getting those kids out!"

"Milo and the Ringmaster aren't getting away with this!"

Suddenly everyone got quiet and turned toward Booster Gold. Who had stayed silent in thought.

"Sir?" questioned Skeets as he floated up to his face.

Booster sighed and rubbed his eyes.

"A-all right…I'm in."

"Good choice, Sir! We shall beat those evil doers into the ground!" piped the little robot as he spun around and flew over Booster's head with joy.

"Yeah….Yeah, I'm sure we will!" said Booster as he gained some of his confidence back.

"_Well…maybe the guy isn't that bad after all…"_

"All right everyone," called Batman to get everyone focused again, "We don't have a lot of time left. Robin and Starfire, you'll be entering the southern side of the warehouse, Raven and Beast Boy, you'll both take the eastern side."

BB gave Raven a big hug.

"Isn't this great?! You and I never get paired together!"

"Goodie…" was Raven's reply as she tried to extract herself from Beast Boy's tentacles.

Literally because he had turned himself into an octopus before he hugged her.

Starfire giggled at the two while Robin tried to hide his smile behind his hand.

"_Oi, Tim's trying to act like a mini-bats to impress his team. I'll have to remember bring him down a couple of pegs when we aren't battling for children's lives."_

Batman just surveyed the whole scene coldly and continued his lecture.

"Cyborg, you'll be paired with Booster Gold."

"Say, _WHAT?_" screamed Cy as Booster put an arm around his shoulders.

"Don't worry kid, I'll teach you everything I know…"

A sweatdrop appeared over Cyborg's head as his right eye began to twitch.

"Look pal, I don't-"

"Cyborg….." said Batman, drawing the attention of the young teen. He gave the kid a hard stare and glanced over at Booster.

Cy then turned to Robin, to make sure he was reading him correctly.

Robin leaned over and whispered, "He wants _you_ to watch over _him_."

He looked back at Batman, and could see that he was trusting him to keep Booster in line.

Cy could feel pride swell in his chest as he nodded his head.

"You got it, Batman."

The Dark Knight offered him a small grin in return.

"Nightwing and Batgirl, I want you to enter from the north. I'll enter from the roof and look for Milo and this so called Ringmaster. Keep in contact with Wally and myself as much as you can. Remember that Wally can only monitor what I'm seeing, so inform him of you're progress as much as possible."

Batman turned and looked at the clock.

"All right everyone, it's time. Inform me once you're all in position. We'll go in on my word. Be careful, and good luck."

Everyone then got up and made their way to their respective vehicles.

"Hey Bats," called Wally, "Watch out for yourself too."

Batman turned and gave him a quick nod. As got into the Bat-plane and took off into the unknown.

* * *

Author's Notes: All right! All the Days are over! Now onto the final fight. Hope you all liked the Teen Titan comic nods I added in there. Hehehe…oh Booster is going to drive Cy insane. XD Oh and those disappointed in Wally staying behind…don't worry, he'll find away to bust the party.

Next Chapter: Opening Acts

_Warped circus music begins to play._

To Be Continued….


	21. The Opening Acts

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Sakutia. What or who's that you ask? You'll just have to wait and see. All I'll say is DC owns the rights. Now onto the fic!

* * *

**-The Opening Acts -**

"_Do you want to be wildly entertained? People to know your name? Do you crave fame? _

_Well they say things aren't always what they seem to be. Even your greatest fantasies. _

_You won't believe your eyes, won't even recognize. The wonderment that lies behind the shimmer of the lights…" __**–**_**Enter the Circus, Christina Aguilera**

* * *

**-Batman's POV-**

Batman alighted down to the roof of the circus warehouse with barely a sound. The air duct to his left would be his mode of entry.

He had a very uneasy feeling about this place. Something about the whole situation seemed off, but he couldn't pinpoint what.

As his communicator crackled to life, he put those thoughts aside. It was too late to do anything about it now. Whatever it was, they'd face it when the time came.

"Robin to Batman, we are a go."

"This is Raven, we're in position."

"Ready and waiting, Batman!" exclaimed Booster with great pride. Cy's pain filled groan could faintly be heard over the system.

"Nightwing here, all set on our end. Let's do it."

Batman closed his eyes and took a calming breath. He resigned himself to the fact that though the danger level was high, they couldn't let this continue any longer. And no matter the risks, they were stopping these people.

Once and for _all_.

Then Batman spoke, "Remember, the kids are top priority. Get them out of the warehouse as fast as you can. I'll try to find Milo and the Ringmaster and keep them busy. The rest of you, keep a sharp eye out, anything could happen in there."

"Got it!"

"Right on!"

"Sure thing."

Batman felt his back straighten with resolve,… it was time.

"All right, everyone move out!"

He reached down and ripped the system fan off the air duct.

Batman stared down at the hole for a moment and then crawled in.

* * *

**-Somewhere in the warehouse-**

A man twirled his mustache as he placed a top hat on his head.

"Milo," he said to his lackey sniveling behind him, "It seems that our _guests_ have arrived. Let's….give them a welcome, they'll _never_ forget…"

"Of course…Ringmaster."

Milo ran from the room as the Ringmaster's evil laugh echoed down the hall.

* * *

-**Raven's POV-**

Raven flicked her wrists as her dark power came to life. She glared at the door and yelled, "_Azarath Metrion Zinthos!_"

The door was ripped from its hinges. Raven then encased the security cameras in her dark field and blew them to bits.

"Nice job Raven," said Beast Boy as he jumped into the hall, making a few quick karate moves.

Raven rolled her eyes.

"Come on," she said as they made their way down the hall.

They checked several rooms to no avail. No alarms went off, no guards came to confront them. Something was very wrong here.

"Raven?" asked Beast Boy as they made their way down another hall.

"What?"

"I don't like this."

Raven looked questioningly at Beast Boy. He seemed…subdued. Probably because he was thinking the same thing she was,… that they were walking into a trap.

"I know, we should have run into someone by now."

They hunkered down at the end of another hall that led to a stairway. Raven ignited her powers and took out another set of cameras.

"Raven…what do you think he used on the kids to alter their DNA?"

"Don't know, Batman said it was a mutagen of some kind."

"Oh…." was his saddened reply.

Raven looked at Beast Boy surprised at how his normally enthusiastic behavior had become so dampened.

"..What's gotten into you?"

Beast Boy blushed in embarrassment and looked away.

"Well I…..I just know what it's like is all. You know….having your DNA being altered…and it being permanent and all…"

This revelation startled Raven as she whipped around and looked at Beast Boy in horror.

"Are… are you saying someone _tested _on you and that's how you got your powers?" asked Raven, having never heard Beast Boy mention the origin of his abilities before.

"What?! No…._well_…kinda but not really…"

Raven narrowed her eyes Beast Boy. She could feel the waves of a lingering hurt radiate off of him.

"_For someone so open, he sure does hide a lot of pain. I guess we all have our own ways to deal."_

"Explain," said Raven as they made their way down the stairs.

Beast Boy sighed, "Yeah…well see…I kinda contracted this rare virus called, Sakutia. Normally it kills you after forty eight hours after attacking your DNA structure, turning a person green. But…my parents who were both doctors created a serum and it saved me. But…I'm still…not-"

"You're still not human anymore," finished Raven for him. It seemed that her young friend was taking this case more personally then she had previously thought.

"Yeah…so…do you think, they'll be able to help the kids?"

"_Before they end up the same way you mean."_

Raven, always the realist, was about to tell Beast Boy, that she wasn't sure. They could be stuck in their animal forms forever.

But as she turned tell him this, she heard a small voice call out.

"Is…is some one there?"

The Titans looked at each other and rushed down the hall. They came to a stop at a barred room.

A little girl, with mouse ears and a tail gripped the bars in fear.

"Who? Who are you?" squeaked out the child.

She seemed unable to focus as her glazed eyes seemed to look right through them.

Raven could feel the rage radiating off of Beast Boy. It was like a dense force reaching out to rip away the bars.

He stepped forward and knelt down in front of the little girl.

"Hi there. We're here to rescue you."

For a moment, a light seemed to return to the young child's eyes. Then as suddenly as it came, it faded away.

Beast Boy looked forlornly back at Raven, his eyes clearly pleading with her to help in some way.

She sighed and knelt down next to him.

"What's you name?"

"Um…Sarah…I think…"

Raven was definitely going to kick the person responsible for this into next week.

"Well Sarah, why don't you stand back, while we break you and your friends out of there."

"Okay" was her emotionless reply as she moved away from the door.

Raven was about to use her powers when Beast Boy stopped her with his hand.

"No, allow me."

Beast Boy turned into a bear and ripped the bars off the wall.

The two heroes stepped inside and gasped.

Several children appeared to be passed out and others very frightened. Some seemed to have been spliced, while others looked to have been spared, ….so far.

Beast Boy shook himself out of the trance. "Raven I'll get the kids together. You call Wally and tell him what we've got."

At the mention of Wally, Raven felt her face get a bit red. Why did she get like this whenever she thought about the young scientist? I mean, given he was easy on the eyes, but acting like a crushing teenager was Starfire's department, not her's….

But then again, you can't block out your emotions forever, especially when you feel them more intensely then others. Being an empath, not only heightens your ability to read other people emotions, but also increases the power of your own. That was why she had to work so hard to keep them under control. This new feeling just sneaked up on her.

She let out a quick cough and touched her communicator.

"Raven to Wally. We found some of the kids. We're going to take them outside, over."

"Really? Already? ….didn't you guys run into any trouble?"

"No…. We didn't…… I don't like it either." Raven traveled off in thought as she glanced at the genetically altered children gathering around Beast Boy.

"Raven? Raven, you still there?" called Wally over the communicator.

"Why didn't they just break out?" Raven asked aloud.

"Come again?"

"Beast Boy turned into a bear and ripped down the bars in one swipe……aren't their powers similar to his. Couldn't they have escaped by themselves?"

Beast Boy touched his communicator to talk to Wally too.

"I get what Raven's saying, but some of these kids look pretty drugged up man. Maybe they just didn't have the strength."

"Maybe…it is a bit odd though… Well anyway get the kids to the alleyway in back of the building. I'll update Batman. Keep an eye out for anything else out of the ordinary. I'll check back with you two later. Wally-out."

Beast Boy then turned into a large snake as several of the kids climbed on his back.

Raven turned to the rest of the kids and used her powers to lift them up off the ground.

The two heroes gave each one another a nod and went back out the way they came.

* * *

**-Cyborg's POV-**

It was just his luck. Pure and simple. In the Titans, he was always stuck with BB. Now that he's fighting with Batman, who does he get stuck with?

Booster shot down another camera with a full powered energy blast.

"Another excellent shot, Sir!" said Skeets as he zipped along the corridor.

"Hey, Booster, try to keep it down. Remember what Batman said, 'Get the kids and get out.'"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know," answered Booster with a dismissive wave.

Cyborg rubbed his temple as he sighed, "Hey, Skeets. Could you scan the immediate area for heat signatures?"

"Can do-"

"Delay that order, Skeets. Listen, …Cyborg right? Skeets takes orders from one person and one person only, _me_. Skeets scan for heat signatures."

"Um…right away, Sir."

Cyborg felt his eye begin to twitch. He could have scanned it himself, but noooo he had to go and be friendly and try to involve the two future rejects in the mission.

"There is an energy signature down the hall and to the right."

"Good job, Skeets! Now let's break those kids out of there, wait for the news crews to come, and then _BAM_! We'll be famous!" exclaimed Boost as he ran down the hall.

"Uh….guys…." said Cy as he finished conducing his own scan of the area.

He looked up and saw that they were gone already.

"_Shit! I have to stop them before it's too late!"_

"Guys!" yelled Cyborg as he ran down the hall.

He turned right at the corner, just in time to see Booster use his yellow energy blasts to take down the heavy steel doors at the end of the hall.

Booster turned around to speak to Cyborg, his back to the smoking hole that he had just made.

"Never fear, young hero! I Booster-"

"S-s-sir…Sir, there's som-" said Skeets still facing the doorway.

"Not now Skeets, I'm on a roll," said Booster as he coughed into his hand.

Unbeknownst to him, a large looming shadow was slowly forming in the smoking doorway behind him.

"For I, Booster Gold have taken care of –"

A loud growling noise could be heard coming from above his head.

"I said not now Skeets."

"Tha…thhhat wasn't m-m-me, S-s-sir!"

"Then who-" said Booster as he turned around see the large grotesque face of a genetically altered, fifty foot, foaming mad _**warthog.**_

"Oooooo…snap."

The monster roared right in his face sending gobs of foam and phlegm flying everywhere, covering the wanna-be hero from head to toe in goo.

Booster stood there in shock. Then he blinked and screamed at the top of his lungs and cowered on the floor.

Cy saw his chance, and sent an energy blast at the hog's face.

The beast roared in pain and scratched at the offending injury.

Booster grabbed Skeets in his arms and ran toward Cy and the two hightailed it out of there with the recovering warthog right on their heals.

"Skeets, why didn't you tell me the signature was fifty feet tall?!"

"You didn't ask!!"

"I don't care whose fault it was!" yelled Cyborg, "Both of you just shut up and run!"

They heard the beast roar again and doubled their efforts to escape down the hall.

* * *

**-Nightwing's POV-**

"Nightwing to Wally. Batgirl and I found a group of kids being held in a cell on the second floor," said the masked hero into his communicator.

As Nightwing spoke to Wally, Batgirl had already taken a pick out of her utility belt and started on the lock.

"_Cage_ is more like it," muttered Batgirl from the floor.

Nightwing smiled at her indignation on the kids' behalves. He knew there was a reason why he loved her.

"Good," answered Wally with a sigh of relief, "Raven and Beast Boy have already found another group as well. Has anything _**strange**_ happened so far?"

"Strange?" question Nightwing as he looked down at Batgirl.

"Not that we've seen…in fact…we've encountered no opposition whatsoever…"

To this, Batgirl brought her head up and sent Nightwing a concerned frown.

"Yeah, that's what Raven told me too. Somethin-"

"Shhh…" said Nightwing as he caught something move out of the corner of his eye.

His eyes narrowed at the corner where the hall met the room's doorway.

"What's wrong?" questioned Wally with a hint of worry in his voice.

"I think I just saw something take off down the hall. Hold on a sec, I'm going to check it out."

Nightwing took a birdarang out of his belt and gave Batgirl a quick nod.

She nodded in reply and went back to picking the lock while Dick took care of the threat.

Nightwing carefully made his way down the empty hall, birdarang in hand.

He reached the end of the hall and came up beside the corner he saw the shadow disappear around. He quickly moved over to the wall, and pressed his back up against it.

The sound of his carefully monitored breathing was the only thing he heard. He closed his eyes and concentrated as hard as he could.

After several minutes, the shuffled sounds of footsteps could be heard retreating down the corridor.

Nightwing glanced around the corner just in time to catch a glimpse of a leg, as a person raced around the corner at the other end of the hall.

"No way," whispered Nightwing as he made his way after person he had just seen.

"No way, what?" question the speedster over the line.

Nightwing shushed him as he sped around the next corner.

Then the lights in the hall suddenly went out.

He froze, standing perfectly still, trying not to make a sound.

Nightwing was about to turn on his night vision mask, when he felt a presence next to him. He let the birdarang fly in its direction……and it hit nothing.

His breathing steadied as his pulse rate began to return to normal. He thought his heart was going to leap out of his chest there for a minute.

With a shake of his head he reached up and turned on his night vision,…just in time to catch a glimpse of a shovel impacting his face.

The blow sounded with massive crack, as he felt to the floor screaming in pain.

"Nightwing!" called Wally over the communicator, "Nightwing can you hear me?!"

The masked hero tried to stand up, but the pain in his head denied him from doing so.

"Nightwing?" yelled a familiar voice from down the hall.

"_No! Babs it's a trap!"_

"Leave me! It's a-"

Nightwing could hear her fighting down the hall as Batgirl apparently rammed someone's head into a wall. Then he heard her sharp intake of a breath and a scream.

"B_A_TGIRrrL!" called Dick, as his words began to slur from his head trauma.

Then the lights in the hall suddenly came back on.

Nightwing's eyes widened in horror as he saw Batgirl's unconscious body lying prone on the floor.

A sharp gasp escaped from his lips as he felt a presence standing over his hunched form.

He looked up into the face of his attacker with unbridled rage.

"YO-" was the only sound he could make before the person struck his head again with the shovel. The blow rendered him speechless as he gasped and sputtered on the floor, trying to hang onto consciousness.

The attacker picked up his head and gently whispered in his ear, "Sorry Big Bird, but we've got some plans for yous two."

Nightwing felt his communicator being removed from his ear.

The last thing he remembered was the sound of his communicator being smashed to pieces by the shovel……and then he knew no more.

* * *

**-Robin's POV-**

Robin and Starfire walked through an automatic sliding door into what appeared to be a lab.

Star gasped at the sight of the sterile environment. Various lab tables were set up with beakers and crucibles filled with bubbling and burning chemicals. Long plastic tubes deposited the siphoned liquids into a series of test tubes, all lined up in a row.

An examining table sat in the middle of the room. Arm and leg straps hung loosely from its sides, waiting to be used.

Starfire's eyes began to fill with tears.

"How could anyone do such things? To such poor and innocent beings?" she whispered in a voice cracking with emotion.

Her compassionate was clearly mirrored in Robin's eyes. He reached out his hand to hers and gave it a small squeeze.

Surprised at such a gentle gesture from Robin, she turned her head up to look at his face.

He gave her a small smile and let go of her hand.

"That's what we're here for. To stop them," said Robin softly.

"Right," answered Star with a nod of her head as she wiped away her tears.

As Star recollected herself, Robin's eyes scanned the room. Nothing caught his interest, until he laid eyes on best thing he could have found, a computer.

He turned back to Starfire and said, "Keep watch at the door. I'll make a copy of the hard drive. With any luck, it'll have enough evidence in it to keep whoever's responsible in jail for a long time."

"Of course."

Starfire then walked over to the side of the sliding door and stood in a fighting stance, ready to pounce.

Robin fought down the blush that was trying to creep onto his face.

"_Man, I hate it when she looks at me like that. I always feel so…weird…It's not like I like her or anything, right? I mean…she's just my friend right?"_

Robin tossed those emotional thoughts out of his mind and sat down at the computer.

From his utility belt, he pulled out a disk with a database hacking program on it. He placed the CD into the drive and clicked on the icon that appeared. The program would take fifteen minutes to copy all the server's files onto the disk.

So for now, all they had to do was wait.

"Well, well, well….what tasty little tidbits do we have here?" growled a voice from the back of the lab.

Star and Robin whipped their heads around to see a very unwelcome sight.

One of the bookcases had been pushed aside to reveal a hidden door.

Two beings stood in the doorway. The one on the right was part tiger and part man. The other was a woman who had apparently been fused with an octopus. Large dark colored tenticales had replaced her legs and her hair seemed to move with a medusa like quality. Both creatures smiled at them with sinister intent.

Starfire's eyes glowed green as she charged up her hands.

Robin stood up from the computer, gripping the chair's back with his left hand.

The tiger-man ran at him with a roar.

In one swift motion, Robin lifted the chair above his head while dodging the attack.

The beast-man stopped just before he rammed into the computer.

He turned just in time to see his prey slam the chair down across his spine.

The monster roared in pain and ripped the chair away from Robin.

It flew right toward Starfire, but she ducked in time as it became imbedded in the wall right above her head.

"Remember what the bosses said," called the octo-woman to her partner, "They want the boy alive."

"I KNOW!" roared the man as he set his sights on Robin.

The teen's face became grim as he extended his silver pole.

"_This is not going to be easy."_

* * *

**-Batman's POV-**

He had been searching the top floor of the warehouse for nearly an hour. There wasn't a soul to be seen. This unsettled him greatly. Normally he would have come across at least three armed guards by now. But the eerie silence continued to hover stagnant in the halls.

This could mean only one thing.

Someone was waiting for them.

"Psss!" called out a hushed voice from over head.

Batman looked up and saw Danny dangling above him from the ceiling.

He pointed toward a room at the other end of the hall.

Batman took out a batarang and made his way toward the door.

As he gripped the handle, Danny suddenly dropped down right in front of him, franticly waving he arms.

"No!" he whispered in a harsh tone, "It's just Elena and Matt in there."

Batman narrowed his eyes at the boy and gave him a small glare. All of this didn't sit well with him.

"_How in the heck did they know where I was? And for that matter, how'd they get way from Milo, again?"_

Batman folded the batarang into his hand…but he didn't put it away.

He opened the door and walked in.

And low and behold, it was just as Danny had said. Elena was leaning against the wall and Matt sat next to her on top of an empty crate.

Both visually perked up when Batman entered the room.

"Batman! Good, Danny found you," said Matt excitedly, "We know where Dr. Milo is. We overheard him talking to one of his lackeys. He said he was going to give some kids a 'training' exercise in the circus hall."

Batman frowned. He certainly didn't like the sound of that.

"_Wait a second…"_

"How did you kids get out again, without Milo's knowledge?"

Elena smiled at him slyly.

"Danny took caresss of the camerasss withhh webbingsss," she hissed, "And I…"

The snake-girl flicked her fingers as all five of the nails on her fingers became pointed spikes. "picked the locksss."

She then whipped her hand towards the wall, and the spikes flew off her hand and embedded themselves deep inside.

Danny had come up behind Batman and whispered, "We think she got some stingray DNA mixed in there as well. Her spiked barbs temporally paralyze creatures."

"_Well… that's good to know."_

Suddenly Batman's communicator sparked to life.

"Bats, you there?" asked Wally over the speaker.

Batman reached up to his headset.

"Go ahead, …Did anyone find any of the kids yet?"

"Well…yeah, kinda, but we've got bigger problems then that. I've lost contact with Nightwing and Batgirl. I think someone ambushed them."

Batman felt his left hand clench into a fist at his side as he began to grind his teeth.

"Right. I'll take care of it. As you can see, I've met up with Matt, Danny, and Elena. They're going to take me to Milo. Hopefully, I'll find Nightwing and Batgirl there too."

"Okay, but keep your com-link open so I can hear what's going on."

"Right," answered Batman as he turned the small dial in his cowl up a bit.

"There, how's that?"

"Crystal. Now get going."

Batman turned toward the kids and said, "Take me there, _NOW_."

* * *

After several minutes of running down various corridors and halls, Batman and the trio came upon a large room that held three rings, like that of a circus arena. Empty cages littered the floor as several low lit lights shown down from the high rafters of the room's ceiling.

As the four entered the room, a heavy steel door slid close behind them, making the children jump.

Batman hid his arms under his cape as he took two batarangs from his belt.

An old sound system suddenly crackled to life, as warped circus music began to play, weaving its unsettling melody throughout the stage.

The kids became terrified and began to huddle closer together.

Batman stepped in front of the three, hoping to shield them from whatever was coming.

The tension continued to build, when suddenly,

_**ZAPPP!**_

The nervous children nearly jumped out of their skins at the noise. A giant spotlight had suddenly come to life above their heads.

They all turned toward the direction of where the noise had come from.

….And there, on a pedestal… next to the large throw switch… stood a man, with short dark hair and eyes. He had a long hooked nose and deep circles under his eyes. He wore a pristine white lab coat and brandished a large electrical cattle prod in his hand. It came to life with a streaming surge of electrical energy between its duel prongs, jumping and crackling like a Jacob's ladder.

"Welcome to our _**Freak Show**_, Batman," he said in a cool and collected voice, "I've been expecting you…"

Batman smirked at the madman that stood above him.

"Dr. Milo, I presume?"

The hollow laugh of the insane scientist echoed through the room.

He took a gasping breath and replied, "The very same."

* * *

TO BE CONTINUED…

Hehehe!

Author's Notes: Okay. I think my brain died while writing that. Boy was that ever complex! And the next part's even worse! Anyway, I hope everyone liked it. Good and long eh?

Remember, reviews inspire me to write more…and they make me very happy!

So as always, please read and review! Write you all again next time. Bye!


	22. Ringmaster

Disclaimer: _Mists walks out in a ringmaster outfit complete with top hat and cane._

Hi everyone sorry for the long wait. Many important things came up this past week that couldn't be helped. Anyway, I'd now like to restate that I'm going off of JLU's Box Set Timeline. Not the air date timeline. On the box set, it says The Greatest Story is _after_ The Return. So Booster Gold hasn't evolved character wise yet. But Cy's going to give him a push in the right direction soon enough. Also, Mr. Terrific is filling in for Jonn in the Watchtower while he and Supes are on a mission. It's in Chapter 12 I think, but I know I had Jonn say it before he and Clark left Bruce's. I'm just foreshadowing later events in the JLU universe. You'll notice a lot more of that soon enough.

Now that that's all taken care of, let's get this show on the road, shall we?

* * *

**-Ringmaster-**

"_Is it true what they say? Is it all just fun and games? Or is there more behind the makeup and the faces full of paint? …I ask you…Do you want to come and play? HAHAHA! _

_DO YOU WANT TO COME AND PLAY?" __**–**_**Enter the Circus, Christina Aguilera**

* * *

**-Robin's POV-**

The tiger-man slowly began to circle around Robin.

"Star, take on Ursula over there. Tigger's mine."

Starfire responded with a quick nod as she dove under the sea witch's whip like tentacles.

Robin turned back to his opponent with a sly smirk.

"Here kitty, kitty. Or are you afraid of the little birdie?" taunted the Boy Wonder further enraging the beast's temper.

Red hot steam puffed out of the creature's flared nostrils. A fierce roar erupted from the beast's throat as he pounced upon Robin with murderous intent.

As he leapt for Robin's neck, the teen brought his silver rod up to block and lodged the weapon deep within the animal's jaw. The beast snarled and snapped at his prey, but the pole prevented him from getting into striking distance.

The tiger-man then changed tactics and swiped at Robin's sides with his claws. The young hero let out a sharp painful breath as he felt the sharp claws slice into his right arm. But he would not cry out. Not in front of Star, and certainly not in front of his enemy.

He was not weak. He was no longer a child.

Robin gave the creature a sharp kick that would take down man or beast. Right smack-dab in the nuts. The hybrid man's teeth let go of the pole as he whimpered in pain. Robin took this opportunity to slip out from under the beast. He did a side roll and tumbled out into a perfect defensive stance.

Meanwhile, Starfire continued to avoid 'Ursula's' tentacles. As time wore on, it became increasingly difficult to do so in such a confined space. Every time she dodged one, it would stick to something else in the room. The sea witch wrapped her slimy appendages around the scientific equipment and was now flinging it at Starfire with a crack like a slingshot.

Star could only counter with small bursts of energy, afraid to set aflame the caustic chemicals that resided in the room. The monstrous woman sent another projectile of glass and boiling chemicals at her as she ducked under the closest lab table.

The woman sneered at the teen as she lashed out another tentacle wrapping it around the table with such force that it buckled inwards. She arched her back as she heaved it into the air and slammed it down onto Star's head.

"STARFIRE!" yelled Robin as he saw his friend go down.

"Worry about yourself, BOY!" roared the tiger-man as he leapt at Robin, claws swinging, ready to rip the Boy Wonder to shreds. He blocked the creature's frantic swipes with his pole easily enough. The lackey was letting his rage rule him. His fighting style was becoming even sloppier than before.

Robin peered out of the corner of his eye and saw the sea creature rip the table off of Starfire's limp body. The witch then lashed another tentacle out and bound her in a tight, bone crushing coil. She raised the Tamaranian to her face as the young girl began to stir.

"NO!" screamed Robin as he turned and dealt 'Tigger' a deafening blow to the side of his head. He then retracted his pole, reached into his belt and tossed several birdarangs towards the hybrid woman.

She laughed as she used her tentacles to bat the things right back at him as if they were flies.

Robin dodged and tried to shield himself from the incurring explosions with his cape. But against blasts that large, and in such a confined space, he didn't stand a chance.

The octo-woman wrapped a strong tentacle around his neck and lifted his body into the air. He kicked and struggled against her hold uselessly. With his air supply was cut off, he felt like he was going to pass out any second.

"Ahh…so much for the _Love Birds_," she whispered sweetly into Robin's face, "I knew I could take you both out by my-"

An enraged howl came from behind the woman. She turned just in time to see Starfire's eyes ignite with vengeful rage. The girl's laser vision shot out at the base of the slimy tentacle that held her. The sea witch screeched in pain as her tentacle was sliced clean off.

Star then used her incredible strength to burst apart the coil that had entrapped her. She hovered in the air and created a green starbolt in her hand. She then spun the energy around in a rapid motion, creating a large green disk. The Tamaranian then launched it into the air. The disk sliced through the tentacle holding Robin like it was nothing and he felt to the floor gasping for air.

"Robin!" cried Star, as she flew over to see if he was alright.

Suddenly a sharp dinging noise caught the two hero's attention. They both turned toward where the noise was coming from. On the ground to their left, lay the lab computer battered on the floor. Its screen flicked in and out, but miraculously the computer was still running. The download bar read 100%. Robin stumbled over to the computer and extracted the data disk.

"That's it. We got the info. Let's go!" said Robin quickly as he saw their two recovering combatants begin to make their way towards the duo.

Star grabbed Robin by the arm and flew out of the lab as fast as she could. Robin removed an explosive from his belt and flung in back into the lab. Someone could be heard screaming, 'RUN.' The whole room exploded into a fireball as Star and Robin took off to try and find the rest of the kids.

* * *

-**Cyborg's POV-**

He didn't know how they did it, but they did. Somehow, in the labyrinth of halls and corridors, they had lost the genetically altered warthog. Now the two were out of breath, and rapidly heaving the air in and out of their lungs like it was going to disappear any second.

That was it. Cyborg had had enough of this jerk.

"What in the _hell_ is your problem Golden Boy?" gasped out the strained bionic teen.

"Uh? That's Booster Gold …to you…and I…had it under-"

"On what planet was that considered under control?! What's _wrong_ with you? There are kids in peril here! And all you care about is if the newspaper will spell your name right in the article."

Booster snorted from his kneeling position on the ground.

"Like you know what it takes to be a _real hero,_ kid. You're not even in the League."

Cyborg stood up to his full height, and glared down at the _hero_ now cowering at his feet.

He took a breath and coolly answered, "…You're right. I'm not in the League. And I don't think I'd want to be, if they let sniveling little low lives like you in so easily. You're more of a self serving villain than a hero. Being a hero is thankless and self-sacrificing. As long as one single person gets to go back safely to the ones they love, then that's all the thanks I need. I've risked my life thousands of times over, and I'll risk it thousands more, because I _know_ what I'm doing is right. What are you willing to risk? It's certainly not you're pride…. So I ask you, what makes _you_ a hero?"

At this Skeets quickly flew up into Cyborg's face.

"Booster Gold is nothing like that! He's-"

"Skeets…" breathed out a tired voice from the floor, "Enough."

"But, Sir!-"

"He's right, and you know it," whispered Booster as he got up from the floor.

"_Huh…now that was not the answer I was expecting."_

"Come again?" questioned Cyborg, clearly baffled.

"Look…I'm sorry I've been a jerk. Sometimes I just can't help it….You see, in the League…there are so many other superheroes that us lesser ones tend to get over looked… a lot."

At this Cyborg averted his eyes away from the subdued superhero.

"_He got jealous. Kinda like_ _I did with Robin when making Titan's East. But still, that's no excuse for the way he's acting…We really can't get into this right now. The kids need us to work together and save them. I guess I'll just grin and bear it."_

"Yeah…I guess I've been there a time or two in the Titans as well," said Cy as he extended his hand to the man, "Truce?"

Booster gave him a small smile and shook his hand, "Truce, thanks Cyborg."

"Yeah well…come on, we have to find some of those kid-"

A familiar, inhuman howl came from down the hall in front of them. They both looked up to see the giant warthog barreling down on them again.

"_Awwww MAN!"_

"I'm outta here!" screeched Skeets as he zipped away in the other direction.

"WAIT FOR US!" yelled the two heroes as they followed the little robot's speedy exit.

* * *

**-Batman's POV-**

Dr. Milo stood on the platform next to the left most circus ring. He looked at Batman with a clinical eye, as if he was analyzing a strange new specimen.

Batman glared at the vile man from below. With a flick of his wrist, he extended the batarang in his palm to full size. He brought his arm back ready to throw.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Batman," said Milo waving a chastising finger.

He then turned to the circuit board next to him and flipped another switch. This time, the spotlight over the right circus ring came to life….and revealed two lifeless beings, bound back to back, dangling from the high ceiling.

Batman's eyes widened in horror until he saw the masked pair lightly stir.

"_Dick and Barbara. At least they're alive… for now." _

Batman turned his attention back to Milo.

"Let them go, Milo. Or are you too chicken to face me yourself?"

Milo's emotionless face finally twisted into a sneer.

"You're such an inferior specimen that normally I wouldn't even waste my time on you. But since my benefactor saw it fit to take care of you, I must oblige."

After this the doctor let loose an insane cackle, "Oh Batman, you really are a gullible fool. Did you really think that three of my successful hybrids could escape this lab without my knowledge? It's pathetic really."

Batman heard the children gasp in horror behind him. Poor kids thought they had gotten away clean.

The Dark Knight sent the doctor's sinister sneer right back at him.

"I figured you knew we were coming, which is why I brought back up. Most of the kids are already safely away from here. So despite your best efforts, it seems that you're the one who's lost."

After hearing this, another of the doctor's cold, heartless chuckles filled the room, "Oh have I now? You are totally clueless of how deep this runs. I'm not out of surprises yet Batman. After all….this whole show's been just for you."

"What does _that _mean?" growled Batman with a fierce glare.

Milo then shook his head and snapped his fingers.

Suddenly two creatures darted out from the shadows. One was clearly a wolf-man, complete with glowing yellow eyes and coarse gray hair. The other appeared to be a woman fused with a bat, making her appearance seem gargoyle like in comparison.

"Now, if we're quite done chatting Batman, I'd like to get to the part where I beat you to a living pulp…Kevin, Ashley…_RIP THEM TO SHREADS!_"

The two beasts leapt at Batman, but were meet by a field of flying barbed spikes. The creatures howled in pain and Batman turned around to see Elena looking very angry with hands in a claw like stance.

"Kids, I know…. but you have stay out of this. It's too-"

"We know the risks Batman, but this our fight as well," said Matt with a look of resolve, far beyond his years.

Danny replied in agreement, "I'll get your friends down from the ceiling. Elena and Matt will handle Milo's lackeys. You go after Milo."

Batman gave the kids a hard look, but he had no other choice. He needed the help, so he had to comply.

"Be careful," said Batman as he launched his grappling hook into the air and swung toward the Milo's platform.

"Give him a good crack for us!" called Matt as he and the others turned to face their combatants.

"Danny getsss goingsss we'll handle thisssss," hissed Elena as she extended her nails with a flick.

"Right," answered the spider-boy as he started to climb up the wall towards where Nightwing and Batgirl were being held.

Batman swung at Milo and gave him a hard crack across the jaw. The scientist then tried to counter with his electrical cattle prod, but Batman had caught the pole with his hands and pushed Milo back towards the wall.

"Who are you working for?" roared Batman as he forced the man back.

"And ruin the surprise? _Never_," the insane doctor coldly stated as the two fought back and forth.

"Then let's play," said Batman with an evil smirk as he rammed the evil man into the wall.

* * *

**-Robin's POV-**

"_This is degrading." _

Robin was getting quite miffed at his girlfriend who was still dragging him behind her like a lost child.

"_Gahh! My friend! My friend who is a girl. Not my girlfriend!!"_

After mentally berating himself, he called to her with an exasperated groan, "Star, can you please put me down, _now_?"

"Oh! Sorry, Robin," said Star as she gently placed Robin on the ground.

"Thanks," he said as he dusted himself off.

Star then gasped and grabbed Robin's hurt arm, hard.

"Robin! Why did you not tell me you were hurt?"

"_Owwww…"_

Robin hid his pain pretty well though as he said, "I'm alright, Starfire."

He then looked down at his arm and noticed she still hadn't removed her hand.

"Uh…you know you can let go now."

Star blushed bright red and shyly turned away from Robin.

Tim felt his own blush coming on, but he coughed the emotion away.

"So…."

"Yeah…."

The short silence that spanned between them was abruptly cut off by a loud scratching noise.

The two heroes gave each other a look and took off down the corridor. The two then turned a corner and found a holding cell with seven kids.

Robin touched the communicator in his ear.

"Robin to Wally. We found a group of kids locked in a cell…."

It was then that Robin noticed an abandoned lock pick on the floor.

Before he could even contemplate it's meaning, his headset crackled to life.

"Great job kid, I think you found the kids that Dick and Babs were trying to break out."

Robin felt his blood run cold, "There's a lock pick on the floor. And what do you mean, _were_? Where are they now?"

"Don't worry, they're both okay Tim. Bats is trying to rescue them now. Get the kids out of there and be careful, whoever got the jump on Dick and Babs might still be paroling the area. Raven and Beast Boy have found most of the kids. They're in the alleyway out back. I want you to met up with them and then go back in to do one more sweep. Got it?"

"All right Wally, it's your call. We'll be out in a minute."

Robin picked up the abandoned lock pick and was about to start on the lock, when a familiar orange hand gently stopped him. With a small smile Star said, "Please, allow me."

Robin stepped back as Star reached out her delicate hand…and crunched four of the bars together. Then with a mighty pull, she yanked the whole structure right out of the wall.

"_Whew! Man that's hot. I- Uhhh! I mean- DAMN IT! There I go again. She's a friend. FRIEND."_

The Boy Wonder, tired of fighting with himself, then walked into the cell and gathered up a little girl who was too weak to move, gently into his arms.

"It's alright sweetheart," he whispered, "It will all be over soon."

The dazed child just blinked up at him and fell asleep in the crook of his arm.

He then looked up at Star who had managed to gather the rest of the kids together and get them on their feet.

The two shared a saddened glance.

Then Robin took a deep breath and said, "Come on, Beast Boy and Raven are waiting outside."

And with that, the large group fled down the hall.

* * *

**-Batman's POV-**

Batman rolled left as Milo swung the cattle prod down on his head. The electrified poles slammed into a wooden crate, smashing it into pieces of blazing tinder.

Meanwhile, Elena and Matt were fighting back to back. The bat-woman took off into the air with a flap of her massive wings.

"Elena, slingshot time!" called Matt to his friend.

Elena gave a sharp nod of her head and circled her long tail around Matt. She then heaved her tail back and flung Matt into the air. The boy extended his sharp claws as he shot towards the gargoyle. With one quick strike, he clawed her face and wings. She screeched in fury as they both tumble back to the ground.

The wolf-man tried to approach Elena, but the cobra in her hissed fiercely and she guarded herself on all sides. Then suddenly she spun around with a crack, and latched her tail around the wolf's wrist. He bit and clawed at the coil, but it was no use, her scales were like iron and protected her from the attack. Once again she whipped her tail around, except this time she sent the wolf-man flying into a brick wall. He hit with a rather satisfying smack and was rendered unconscious.

High over head, Danny had reached the captured couple.

The two appeared to be moving more now. Danny was glad to see that they were waking up. He dangled from the ceiling, trying to figure out a way to get them down safely. Then he snapped his fuzzy fingers and started shooting webbing back and forth below the dangling duo to create a net to catch them.

As he worked, he called out to the couple. "It's okay guys, don't move around so much. I'll cut you both loose once I'm done."

"You got it, Spiderman," babbled a groggy Nightwing, "Did anybody get the number of that bus…..caus' I'll sue'm….on second thought…I'll get Bats to do it….it's his fault I'm here."

Danny chuckled and got back to work, "Stay still. I'm almost done."

Down below, Matt had used his speed to rapidly punch and kick the bat-woman back and forth like a punching bag. When she finally hit the wall with her back, she too fell unconscious.

Now, Milo was the only one remaining. Elena and Matt gave each other a nod and headed toward where Batman and Milo were fighting.

As Milo went to strike Batman again, he threw a batarang at the man's hand. The sharp object cut a deep slice across his knuckles, causing him to drop the cattle prod. Batman kicked the vile weapon away and pinned the good doctor to the wall by his throat. A strangled whimper escaped the lips of the pitiful man, as Batman leaned into his face with his classic scowl.

"I'm going to ask you this _ONE MORE TIME_," demanded the Dark Knight, "**WHO** **ARE YOU WORKING FOR?**"

Milo looked at him with that same emotionless face. And whispered,"… you'll find out soon enough."

_**GAAAAAAHHHH!!!!**_

Came the sudden bloodcurdling screams. Batman whirled around to see Elena and Matt screeching in pain. They clawed at their necks franticly and began to spasm on the floor. He let go of Milo and started to make his was back towards the kids.

"BATMAN!!" called a frantic voice from over head. Batman looked up to see a conscious Nightwing screaming at him, "CATCH HIM! HE'S GOING TO FALL!"

The Dark Knight's eyes widened in horror as he saw Danny's grasp on the webbing fail. The boy then quickly plummeted towards the hard cement below.

Batman ripped his net-launcher from his belt and fired. The net shot towards the ceiling and caught him as it continued hurtling back up into the rafters of the warehouse. The weights at the ends of the net looped around one of the support beams and held fast. Danny bounced a bit from the impact, all the while screaming at the top of his lungs.

With the boy safe, he turned back around to question Milo….and found the worm to be gone. No matter, he'd find the sick scientist later. Right now, he had to get to the kids. He jumped down from the platform and ran toward their withering forms.

Batman reached Matt and grabbed him by the shoulders. "Kid! Matt! Can you hear me?! Tell me what's wrong!" But the boy could only yell in pain and scratch at the back of his neck.

"_His neck."_

Batman spun the boy around and pushed back the thick fur growing on the boy's neck. He gasped at what he beheld….a growing network of circuits crept across the child's neck and spine. They were growing larger by the second.

"_Nanotech?! But-"_

Suddenly the two spotlights over head went out….and the warped circus music stopped playing. All Batman could hear was his own breathing and the painful cries of the children in agony.

Then the main spotlight in the center ring burst to life with a powerful jolt. The sudden light source blinded the Dark Knight as he tried to shield his eyes.

As Batman began to regain his bearings, he heard the soft _clip clap_ _tap_ of a hard-soled shoe move across the pavement. Gradually, the sound became louder as the person neared the center of the stage.

_clip clap_ _tap._

_Clip Clap_ _Tap._

_CLIP CLAP TAP. _

_**TAP**__._

And then it sharply cutoff.

Batman stood staring at the center ring for what felt like an eternity, when suddenly a figure stepped out into the spotlight.

The man was clad in a traditional ringmaster outfit. He wore a black top hat and bowtie, red jacket with tails, pure white gloves, black patent leather shoes, and a long silver tipped cane.

The spotlight shining over head cast the man's face in shadow. He placed his hands on his cane and waited in the center ring.

Suddenly a loud female voice burst over the intercom system cutting the tense atmosphere like a knife,

"Presenting!! For your entertainment enjoyments! Dah ONE Dah ONLY-"

"_Oh my God. IT CAN'T BE."_

The Ringmaster bowed to Batman with a great flourish as he ripped the top hat off his brow….and the _fake_ mustache off his face.

He then boomed out with his signature psychotic laugh, "SURPRISE!!! MR. J IS BACK BABY!!!!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!"

Batman felt his blood run cold.

_Joker._

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED. **


	23. The Greatest Show on Earth

Disclaimer: Hi everyone. Sorry for the amazingly long wait, but as I stated in my profile, I had pink eye. Enough said. But now I'm back, with a new chapter no less! Remember I don't own The Hush Sound, The Teen Titans, or any of Bruce Timm's Batman series.

Here we go:

* * *

**-The Greatest Show on Earth-**

"_The lions roar and young men soar… The flames all scorch… the circus floor._

_Puppets on strings… All dance and sing and flap their wings… Trumpets play sick lullabies…" _**–Lions Roar, By: The Hush Sound**

* * *

**-Batman's POV-**

"Why Batman," said the Joker with a wild smile, "you actually look surprised!"

The Joker tossed his cane into the air and caught it.

"Who else did you think was running this show?" asked the Joker as he placed the cane in his left hand and leaned to the side.

"Isn't it every clown's dream, to rise to the top of the ranks? To be the _big cheese_? And baby trust me, for a clown _nothing _is higher than being the Ringmaster."

Batman felt his fists clench against his sides.

"What did you do to these children, Joker? You have me, now let the kids go!"

The Joker jumped as if he was mockingly startled.

"Oh my, you do care quite a bit about the little tikes, don't you? Just look at the little family you made," said the Joker with a sneer as he raised his hand up in the direction of Nightwing and Batgirl.

He then sighed dramatically and clutched a hand over his heart.

"It's a pity though that my henchmen weren't able to obtain all of your 'Bat-Clan,'" said the Joker making air quotes, "but it seems that I'll just have to be content with two of your little bats to witness your demise, _Harley_!"

Harley tumbled out into the spotlight next to Joker. He gently grasped her chin and said, "I believe you know what to do my dear."

The woman squeaked with delight, "You bet puddin'!"

Then Joker sharply tapped the side of her head with two of his fingers, "Then they're all yours."

An evil smile slid across her face as she sprinted from the room.

The distraction was all Batman needed, he whipped a batarang at the clown's head.

Suddenly a figure appeared before the Joker, caught the weapon, and crushed it in his hand.

Batman's eyes widened at the figure that had shielded the clown…..

_Matt._

The Joker let loose another cackle of insane laugher.

"I, unlike _you,_ learn my lessons Batman! Remember my 'Royal Flush Gang?' Things were going _SO WELL!_ Right up until my little Acey decided to betray me…"

He then swooned on the spot, "I had to go through _HELL_ to come back from that Batman. And I'll make sure you feel every last bit of it, before I kill you… So I ask you, what good is an army of genetically enhanced _Freaks_ without a _single way to control them_?"

The Joker kept his eyes on Batman as he removed his top hat and gloves. The hat was placed on the floor, as he tossed the balled up gloves inside.

The Dark Knight felt his heart race as his eyes fell upon the circuitry that laced Jokers hands and temples.

"You remember Jervis Tetch, don't you Batman?" asked the Joker with unsurpassed joy.

"But then, you'd know him better as the Mad Hatter. Quite a brilliant madman, I must admit…but never one to see the _BIG_ picture," laughed the Joker as he flicked his wrist.

Suddenly, Elena hissed and flung a set of spikes at Batman. He rolled left, barely dodging them in time.

"I …_persuaded _him to give me his technology. And I was able to fuse his mind control technology with that of Nanotech. _I_ found a way to genetically alter the children's DNA. Milo doesn't know his way out of a paper bag, though he _did_ make a good decoy…so I'll have to give him that."

Joker then raised his arms and both Elena and Matt came to life and stood in front of Batman, as Danny still struggled high above in the net.

"Kids! Wake up!" yelled Batman at the glowing red eyes of the human puppets before him.

"It's no use Batman!" cackled the Joker in complete elation, "The Nanotech is fused directly to their nervous systems, _any _form of removal would be futile! They are my unstoppable army! _**I OWN THEM ALL, BODY, HEART, AND SOUL!**_"

Batman could feel his mind freeze up. There was no way out of this.

"_How can I fight them? They're just innocent children?!"_

Joker took a deep breath and whispered, "Kill him."

And the two children jerked to life, as if someone had pulled on their strings, and charged at the Dark Knight.

* * *

**-Robin's POV-**

He and Starfire had led the kids out into the alley.

"Raven! Beast Boy!" called Robin as he approached his two friends.

The two heroes turned toward Robin's call, looking quite relieved to see that their friends were okay.

Robin placed the child that he was carrying on the ground.

"We were starting to get worried," said Beast Boy as he came to a stop next to Robin.

"Sorry, but that place is like a maze," Robin said tiredly.

Beast Boy agreed and started to update Robin about the status of the evacuation of the children.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Raven looking uneasy as she scanned the rescued children sitting around them.

"Raven?" questioned Starfire as she approached the empath, "You seem tense. Is something the matter?"

"I…I don't know …something…feels _off_ about this whole thing…" she worriedly whispered as she rubbed her temples in an attempt to clear her head.

Robin placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Are you sure you're-"

_**AHHHHH!!!!!**_

That's when it happened. Every lifeless child in the alley suddenly went wild. They were screaming and howling in excruciating pain. As they spasmed on the ground, Starfire and Beast Boy hastened to their sides, franticly trying to determine what was going on.

Raven fell to her knees, her hands were tightly pressed against the sides of her head. She franticly tried to block out the pain. Robin held onto her arm, pleading with her to fight the emotion off, and tell him what was going on.

After several minutes of trying to communicate with them, Robin pressed the com-link in his ear and called, "_Mayday! Mayday!_ We need back up, _NOW!_"

"It's a little late for dat, Tweety-bird," said a sickeningly sweet voice from behind him.

Robin turned around to see a very familiar and unwelcome face.

He sneered at the empty-headed woman standing on top of the dumpster, examining her nails as if she was bored.

"Harley, I should have known you and Joker were behind this. Only you two could ever come up with something _this_ vile!"

The acrobatic woman just shrugged him off, "Sticks and Stones, kid', Sticks and Stones….BUT I have a feelin' that _THEY_ will be the ones dah hurt you!"

"What-"

Suddenly, Robin heard Starfire and Beast Boy gasp horrified. He spun around and saw the weak, lifeless children they had saved suddenly come to life… and stand up with glowing red eyes.

"_Oh my god…"_

Harley's high pitched laugh echoed through the alleyway as she gave them all a one handed clap.

"Come on kids! Let's give your intrepid' heroes what dhey truly _deserve_…." her eyes took on a crazed look all their own as her psychotic smile reached its height.

"…KILL UM!" she growled as the mind controlled children attacked.

Raven snapped out of her trance and immediately shielded her friends.

"Robin! What can we do? They are just children! How do we defend ourselves against them?!" cried Starfire.

Robin's eyes were wild. The mutated children beat at the force field like wild animals. Raven was sweating bullets trying to hold the shield.

He extended his staff and yelled, "Protect yourselves the best you can! Try your best not to hurt the kids! If you can get a shot, try and knock Harley out, she's controlling all this somehow."

Raven's force field began to flicker.

"ON MY MARK!" yelled Robin as he held up his hand for them to hold.

The shield disappeared.

"_**TITANS, GO!**_**"**

* * *

**-Wally's POV-**

"_**TIM! TIM! COME IN!!!" **_called Wally franticly into his headset.

The speedster ripped the device off his head and threw it to the ground. He slammed his palms down on the computer's keyboard and pushed himself up out of his chair. Wally flinched slightly at the pressure placed on his ankle. But that was minuscule, to the horror of in front of him. He watched Elena and Matt attack Bruce as the Joker's laugh echoed through the night.

_The Joker. _

_THE Joker. _

"_That SICK bastard! HOW DARE HE HURT THOSE KIDS!"_

"Master Wally, I suggest you calm down, lest you wish to short out the computer," said Alfred as he gravely stared up at the computer monitor.

Wally looked down at his hands. They were vibrating at an alarming rate.

"There has to be something I can do!" he growled, "Bats and the others are going to get killed!"

"But Sir, your-"

Wally spun around and glared at the butler, already knowing what he was going to say.

"I don't give a _DAMN_ about my ANKLE! **I WILL NOT SIT HERE AND WATCH THEM DIE!**"

"I wasn't suggesting that _SIR_," said Alfred, clearly offended that Wally thought so little of him, "Isn't there _anyone_ else you can call for help?"

"NO!" exclaimed Wally as he flopped down into Bruce's chair, "There's no time!"

Wally rubbed his hands up and down his face and looked hard at his ankle.

"I'm going to have to try it…risks or not…it's the only way," whispered Wally as he crossed his legs and pulled his foot into his lap.

He closed his eyes and took three, deep calming breaths. The scientist then raised his hand into the air, and starting vibrating it. Faster and faster it went…until it was barely a blur. Wally then slowly lowered his hand to his ankle, and allowed it to hover above his skin.

Alfred stood amazed as he watched the extreme level of concentration on the man's face. Wally could sense that Alfred was afraid of what he was doing. Hurting himself would not help the others and for that fact alone, he knew Alfred wouldn't disturb him.

He could feel his strained ligament under his palm. Every cell was brimming with life. They pulsed and beat with his own heart, just like in his experiments. He felt around until…there. New cell growth in his muscle tissue and the strained ligament. His ankle was healing, but not fast enough.

Wally concentrated on the formations of new cell growth. It was now or never. He prayed that his control had become precise enough….if it hadn't….

But he pushed that thought away, now was not the time.

He opened his mind and thought one word:

_Accelerate._

He could feel it working. The energy he was infusing his cells with was causing them to replicate at an amazing rate. And in less than a minute, he had completely healed the damaged tissue in his ankle.

As he pulled his energy back, he could feel his cell replication rate return back to normal.

"_Thank God…but I wouldn't dare try to do this too often. The cell growth might not return to normal speed next time. That… and it's extremely tiring." _

Wally heaved air in and out of his lungs, he was exhausted….

But that didn't matter, saving Bruce and the others did.

Shakily, he got to his feet…and put his full weight on his ankle.

"_I'm still standing! It worked! "_

Wally let out an ecstatic "YES!" and jumped up into the air. He landed on his feet without even a flinch.

"My dear boy…" spoke Alfred in an awe like tone, "How on earth-"

Wally held up his hand to quiet him, "No time Alfred, I'll explain later! Now I need a suit…"

This request seemed to bring Alfred back to his senses.

With a snap of his fingers he said, "I think I have just the thing," and ran off into another part of the cave.

Poor Wally was tempted to laugh, seeing stiff old Alfred run. It was quite the sight to see.

He then turned back to the computer and watched as the Joker taunted Bruce some more. The Joker was one of the most dangerous criminals out there. There had to be someone who could help him, he needed some kind of backup…..

Then it dawned on him.

He raced back to the computer and began searching at super speed.

"_I know I saw that video-phone link, I know I did!"_

"Here you are Master Wally," said Alfred as he handed Wally a black suit laced with bright red circuitry running through it.

"_What on earth?"_

And then he saw it, on the chest was a different version of the Bat symbol, and it _too_ was bright red.

"This, Sir is an early prototype of a new suit Batman has been working on. He doesn't have a mask for it yet, so you'll have to use one of Nightwing's. The suit is infused with Nanotech to allow-"

Wally just couldn't take it anymore, he burst out laughing, "IT'S RED! He's always yelling at me that red isn't STEALTHY!!"

Alfred actually gave a bit of a snort, as he coughed the laugh away.

"Yes….well, he _is_ working on a cloaking device to render the wearer completely invisible to the naked eye…." said Alfred in a condescending manner.

Wally still had that sparkle in his eye as he put it on.

"I don't care. It's still _RED_," laughed the speedster with some of his jovial personality returning.

After he put the suit on, he plopped back down at the computer and started once again furiously typing.

"Sir…shouldn't you be on your way?"

"Not without backup," said Wally with a smirk as he called up the video phone-link window.

"But Sir, I thought you said-"

What Alfred was about to say was cut off by the person who suddenly appeared on screen.

"_Who are you…and why have you called me?"_ asked the person on the screen.

Wally sighed and looked up sincerely into the person's eyes, "I need your help."

* * *

**-Cyborg's POV-**

"Robin? _Robin!_ He's not answering," said Cyborg as he and Booster sprinted down yet another hall from the rampaging beast following them.

"Well, we have to do something Cyborg, this is getting ridiculous!" said Booster Gold as he basically dragged himself after the cybernetic teen.

"You're right, rest time!" the two men collapsed where they were, looking as if they'd never be able to stand again.

"_There has to be a way to stop that thing…What would Robin and I, do in this situation?"_

Then it dawned on him. Why hadn't he thought of it before?

"Hey…Boost, what's your super power?"

"Huh?" asked Booster as he tried to supply air back to his brain, "Exploding… energy bolts."

An almost wicked smile stretched across Cyborg's face.

"Really…," he said as his arm began to transform into an energy cannon.

Booster stared in shock at the newly formed weapon.

"I've got the sonic, if you've got the boom," said Cyborg as he looked down at his partner.

As the realization of the plan began to form in Booster's head, he too shared in Cyborg's evil smile and powered up his hands.

"Hey! Yeah, I could go for a good boom…but…" suddenly Booster appeared very worried.

"What is it, Sir?" asked Skeets as he flew in front of Booster's face.

"It's just…the kids are still in here. What if the explosion is too big? They could get hit with it, or worse what if the building comes down?"

"_Well I'll be, he's actually thinking of someone other than himself for once."_

Skeets also appeared to be surprised.

"Oh, Sir.." he chirped softly.

"Booster," said Cy as he placed a hand on the other man's shoulder, "most of the kids are already outside, and if we don't stop that thing now, it's going to take down the rest of the building anyway. So we _have_ to act now."

Booster sighed and got to his feet.

He then powered up his hands and said, "All right! Let's turn that hog into Bacon Bits!"

They heard the stampede of massive hooves approaching them. Its grotesque face turned the corner with an enraged howl, and the two heroes faced him head on.

"_Let's do it!"_ called out the two and charged.

* * *

**-Batman's POV-**

The Dark Knight could feel his strength waning. He had gotten scraped by some of Elena's spikes. He could feel their paralyzing venom start to take affect.

"_A whole genetically enhanced army, completely under the Joker's control, the world will never be able to survive this."_

He dodged another punch thrown by Matt and flipped the kid into a stack of old barrels.

"_Tim and the rest of the Titans could already be dead. They had no chance against an army that large."_

Elena caught Batman's wrist with her tail and flung him high into the rafters. His back smashed hard against the metal beam, with a sickening crunch. The frantic cries of Nightwing and Batgirl kept him from passing out as he slid off the beam and began to fall to the ground below.

"_If Danny gets out of that net, he'll go straight for Dick and Barbara. Everyone I love is in danger. It's my worst nightmare come true. __**I WILL NOT WATCH MY FAMILY DIE AGAIN!**__" _

Righteous angry flooded the Dark Knight's senses as he ripped his grappling-gun out of his belt and fired it back up at the beams over head.

As it caught hold of a beam, his descent jerked to a stop. He used the momentum that he had built up in the fall to swing towards the Joker standing in the center ring.

"_I have to take him out. It's the only way, hopefully the kids will snap out of it if he's unconscious." _

Batman landed in front of the Joker swinging. The madman just laughed and dodged out of the way of his fists. His fighting was becoming sloppy. He knew it. But if he calmed down enough to fight correctly, the poison would take hold.

"_Gotta keep the adrenaline rush going!"_

"_Gotta keep fighting!" _

"_GOTTA WIN!!"_

Batman wound up and sent a massive punch to Joker's head. But the clown ducked low and jabbed him in the abdomen, right were one of the spikes had cut through his armor and grazed him.

He yelled out in pain, and staggered backward clutching his stomach.

As he fell to his knees, the Joker called Elena and Matt into the center ring. And with a sharp strike of his cane, he set all three rings ablaze.

He was trapped. The Joker had finally done it, he had won.

His vision flickered in and out as the smoke began to fill his lungs.

"_So be it, if I have to die here, I'm taking him down with me!" _

He forced the pain away and numbed all his senses. He focused solely on that high pitched psychotic laugh.

Batman charged at the man and tried to push him into the fire.

The Joker had let down his guard, thinking he had won. He barely had time to block. The two men pushed back and forth on the cane, the only object separating them. As the flames rose higher, the men continued to struggle for dominance. Neither one would back down, neither one would run. This battle would decide the ultimate winner, once and for all.

Batman looked into the Joker's eyes, and he looked back. The Joker eyes suddenly held complete elation as he leaned in and whispered…."Ha ha."

The Dark Knight's eyes went wide as a mighty blow struck his back. His painful scream ripped through the night like a bolt of lightning.

And out of the corner of his eye… he saw the glowing red eyes of Matt flicker, as tears streaked down his emotionless furry face. It was then that Batman saw his blood on his claws.

He felt the last of his strength go. And with that, he fell to the floor in a heap.

The Joker's triumphant laughter echoed around him.

He yelled to Elena to pick Batman up. The snake girl complied. Tears also ran down her emotionless face as she bound Batman's arms to his side with her tail and pulled his head back, leaving his neck completely exposed.

"_AT LAST!!!"_ cackled the Joker, _"AT LONG LAST!!! __**I'VE DONE IT!!!**__"_

The Joker came up and spat in Batman's face.

"After all these _**YEARS**_… after all the plans that fell through!!! I've finally _**WON**__!_"

The clown wrapped his arms around his chest tightly and threw back his head in hysterical laughter.

It was clear that he wanted to savor every last moment of his victory.

And when his laughter was finally spent, he brought his head back down and looked right into Batman's eyes, "I was meticulous this time," he said with a growl as he raised his hand into the air.

"Every last deal, I made sure of!"

Batman could feel Elena's grip tighten as Joker formed his hand into a fist.

"I left _nothing… __**NOTHING**__!_ To chance _THIS_ _TIME BATMAN!_ I planned this down to the second! When I found out half the League would be off the planet, I knew it was time to strike. Those kids you brought with you are _weak_ and besides…_What hero would __**EVER**__ harm brainwashed children?!!_ My army is out to _slaughter__!_ What chance do they have if they're not willing to do the same themselves! You heroes are all _TOO WEAK,_ but we villains _FIGHT TO WIN. __**MORALITY BE DAMNED!**_"

The Joker then let loose another insane cackle.

"You're wrong Joker!" growled Batman as he fought to stay conscious, "_You're the ones who are WEAK! You know NOTHING about __**TRUE POWER**__!"_

"And what's that?" asked Joker with a roll of his eyes, "Friendship and love?! _PLEASE!_ Don't you see, they're what make you _WEAK!"_

Joker bent down into his face, Batman could feel his sickening breath touch his skin.

"You're entire 'Bat-family' is in my grasp, and there's nothing you can do to save them. You are helpless and there is _**NO ONE**_ who can save you THIS TIME!"

The Joker flicked the fingers in his hand and Elena did the same. He closed his hand leaving one finger exposed….

"I've known you for a long time, Batman. And from all our battles…. I've found the only way to _truly_ _destroy you…_" Elena's spiked finger started to slowly move down towards his chest, " _is to pierce you straight through the one thing you hold most dear…__** THE HEART!!!**__"_

Batman felt his face cringe. The poor girl. She'd never forgive herself if she took his life. Her hand shook a bit as it moved towards his heart. She was fighting it…he could tell. But it wouldn't be enough.

"It's not your fault, Elena. Please remember that," he whispered as he saw a spring of new tears flow from her eyes.

"_DO IT!" _growled Joker, apparently getting impatient.

The spike was poised over his heart. Inch by inch it came closer….

It was over… there was no hope left.

The Dark Knight closed his eyes.

But then there it was…. the sound had started out as a whisper, then with each passing second it grew louder and louder. The walls and metal framing began to shake with tremendous force.

"What the hell's going on!" yelled Joker as he saw the roof begin to sag and buckle.

Then suddenly, like a great hand had grasped it, the roof began to pull away from the ceiling. The tornado like wind whipped fiercely into the room, extinguishing the fire in the rings.

The roof was then totally ripped asunder, as beams and masonry fell from the high ceiling over head.

In the chaos, Nightwing and Batgirl had somehow gotten free and had grabbed a hold of the net that was holding Danny. They clung to the support beam for dear life.

"_**AAAAHHHHH!!!!"**_

The Joker's scream of absolute horror drew Batman's attention skyward.

He felt his eyes go wide at the sight he beheld.

It couldn't be!

But there, hovering amidst the ceiling debris was the form of a woman with dark, wide, frightening eyes. They were the very doorways to madness. Her short, raven black hair whipped in the wind, as she floated unmoving above their heads.

"Hello Joker," she said softly with a calm so cold, it could freeze the blood in your veins.

The Joker screeched bloody murder and cowered in fear on the floor.

"_**NO!!! IT CAN'T BE!!!"**_ he screamed.

But it was…. and she was there.

The only person the Joker had ever truly feared.

_**ACE.**_

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED.**

Author's Note: Don't you just _love _my cliffhangers?

Can anyone tell that I love the Wild Card episodes? …Anyone at all?

Hehehe!

Next Time: The Grand Finale……..Never piss off the Flash. _Ever._

Please remember to read and review! Two more chapters to go!


	24. The Grand Finale

Disclaimer: Once again I don't own The Hush Sound or the lyrics to their song.

No warthogs were actually harmed in the writing of this fic.

Now as for _clowns_….umm…..just the _one_.

* * *

**-The Grand Finale-**

"_Elephants rear and young men steer…The audience just claps and cheers…I asked around, half empty towns…About a girl nowhere to be found……And the desperate search began…All across this sea and land…I just knew I'd find you here…I just knew I'd find you…" _**– Lions Roar, By: The Hush Sound**

* * *

**-Raven's POV-**

She had to keep going.

There was simply no choice.

Defend or die.

…She had never liked those options.

Raven panted on the brink of exhaustion. Around her laid the unconscious forms of her fallen comrades. She had been able to shield them where they had fallen, but it was becoming increasingly taxing on her mind.

There were too many of them.

The holding back of their full powers was leading to the Titans downfall.

Her head throbbed with the pain she felt radiating off the mind controlled children.

But she could not…. and _would _not fail.

Her team was counting on her to get them out alive. Scratch that……her _friends _were.

And that's what made all the difference.

She was the last one standing. And even if it cost her everything, she would find a way to get them out alive.

Raven took a deep breath and concentrated all the energy she had left into one last attack.

Her eyes glowed with her dark power as the ground beneath her feet turned into large lashing tendrils of dark energy.

Harley was the key, but she was using the kids like a human shield.

She would make her stand. Here and now.

The mind controlled children let up their assault for just a moment, as they watched the dark haired girl's power flare to a new height.

It was all the distraction she needed.

**CRACK!**

She launched herself through the air like a bullet from a gun. Her dark power reached out and pushed the kids in her way, off to the side.

"_Sorry kids, but your puppeteer's mine!"_

Harley squealed with fright as she quickly tumbled out of the way. But she was not quite fast enough, as a bolt of Raven's power grazed her chest as the young witch flew by.

Raven cursed herself for missing as she tumbled to the ground. She had nothing left. Almost all her power was spent. The shields she had cast over her friends' lifeless bodies flickered.

She looked up into the crazed face of the harlequin women standing above her. The woman was looking down at her with that sickening smile, as she raised the metal pipe she carried over her head.

"Nighty, night, don't let the bed bugs-_**AAAHHHHHH!!!!!**_**"**

Raven's head whipped up at the scream. Her jaw dropped open at the surprising sight she beheld.

Harley's head was thrown back with her blue eyes wide with terror. Behind her stood a red haired man in a black suit and mask, on his chest was the red symbol of the Batman.

He had appeared out of nowhere, and had somehow clasped Harley's hands behind her back. But the most mind boggling thing of all was that his transparent hand was plunged straight into her skull. Energy crackled where the connection had been made as Harley screamed in pain.

Then something snapped, and Harley tumbled to the ground. Suddenly, every mind controlled child seized up and dropped like a puppets whose strings had been cut. The woman on the ground gave a faint moan and fell into unconsciousness.

"Sorry Harley, but you left me no choice. Besides, it's past your bedtime," said Raven's savior as he clapped the dust from his hands.

Raven just stared at the man completely stunned.

"_Who on earth is this guy?"_

"You okay, Raven? I came as fast as I could," said the man in a kind voice as he offered her a hand up.

"I….what? How did you- _Who are you?!_" asked Raven clearly baffled by this new comer's appearance.

The masked man squinted at her and rubbed the back of his head shyly.

"Huh…yeah…I know I don't look like it right now, but I'm actually the Flash."

Raven shot him a sarcastic look.

"Uh-huh. Then where's your _normal _costume?"

"Look, it's at the cleaners! Wally sent me to help you so I came!"

"Wally sent you?" asked Raven with a bit of a blush, "But I thought the League-"

Flash let loose an exasperated sigh and knelt down next to Raven and lifted her up to her feet.

"Yeah I know, but we don't have time for this now. Bats is in real danger. I shorted out the Nanotech in Harley's body, so she wouldn't be able to control the kids anymore-"

"_Flash… I am in position,"_ a voice suddenly whispered in her head.

Apparently Flash had heard the voice as well, because the man took off in a black and red blur, running around the warehouse. Then, gradually a tornado began to form and encompass the perimeter of the building completely. Raven used her arms to shield her face, as her hair whipped about her wildly.

The man in the red circuited Bat-suit, then broke off his run and came back to her side.

"Distraction. My friend and that twister should keep Joker busy for a while. Are the others okay? Can you use your powers to check?" asked Flash as he gestured to the other Titans on the ground.

Raven shook her head in wonder.

"_This guy is something else."_

She closed her eyes and let her mind open up to their emotions.

"Yes, they're all fine. In fact, I think they'll be waking up in a second…"

"Good," said Flash as he zipped away and came back holding a small white flower.

With a sweet smile he gave the daisy to her.

"You did a great job. Watch over them okay? I'll be back soon," said Flash with a cocky wink of his eye and sped away into the whirlwind encased warehouse.

Raven slowly bent her head and looked down at the flower that had been hastily placed within her hands.

Her hands closed tightly around it as she fell to her knees….in laughter.

She lifted her head up to the sky and she laughed until she cried.

As the tears fell down her face, she realized just how much she needed that release.

"_Only the Flash would do something like THAT during a battle,"_ thought Raven as she stood up and went to check on her friends.

* * *

**-Flash's POV-**

As he raced down the halls of the warehouse, an explosion seemed to rock the building.

"_Oh no…"_

Flash changed direction and raced to where the vibrations had originated from. He turned down a very large corridor and skidded to a stop as he looked on baffled at the scene displayed before him.

"_Why in the HECK are Cyborg and Booster riding a large, genetically enhanced warthog BRONCO style?!"_

Alas, his eyes were not deceiving him; for there they were, covered in soot, as they tried to wrangle the rampaging beast the best they could.

"Get along little doggie!!!" whooped Cyborg as he and Booster hung onto the back of the genetic monstrosity with all their might.

"_Okay… You know what? …I'm not even going to ask how this happened."_

"YO! Cowpokes!" called Flash to the others, "You guys need help?"

The two men replied, "No, we can handle it!"

"You two _sure_?" asked the speedster with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah! We're good!" grunted the two as they tried to steer the wild thing into the wall.

"All right…." said the Flash as he turned away. He hoped they could handle it, but he couldn't waste time taking that thing out now. Bats and the Joker were top priority.

As he sped down the hall he could faintly hear Booster say, "Who in the heck was _that?_"

"The _hell_ if I know!" said Cyborg loudly, "But he had a Bat-symbol on him, so I guessing he's good!"

"Works for me!" called Booster as another explosion shook the warehouse.

* * *

**-Batman's POV-**

"Acey!" cried Joker as he looked to the ceiling with horror, "My dear sweet-"

Ace cut him off by telekinetically launching a rock towards his head. It just missed hitting him by an inch.

"Call me that again, and it shall be the last thing you ever do," said Ace with a hint of anger growing in her voice.

The Joker looked to the stone and then back up at the girl with a gulp.

"I-I wouldn't be doing that if I were you missy!" yelled the Joker with less confidence than he appeared to feel, "If I'm knocked out or killed the Nanotech in my body will send an electric pulse through all the infected children and they'll go _WILD_."

Batman felt whatever hope he had regained by Ace's presence fade.

"_How on earth are we ever going to be able to stop him then?"_

Ace showed no emotion at all of hearing this news. Then she sent another stone barreling towards his head. He dodged and rolled left just in time as the rock struck the floor with such force it turned into a cloud of dust.

"D-Didn't you hear me!" demanded the Joker from the floor, "All the kids! Even the ones who I gave Harley control over, all their minds will be _FRIED!_ There is no way to remove the Nanotech from my body or theirs!"

Ace just sent him a cold, yet innocent smile.

"Is that so?" she asked in an almost hushed whisper.

Then she dove from the sky, like a hawk after her cowering prey and sent a sharp upper cut right to Joker's jaw.

Crimson blood splattered from his nose as he took up his cane to fight her off.

Batman felt the hold Elena had on him slightly loosen.

"_Now's my chance."_

Though try as he might, he couldn't escape the coil that trapped him. Matt moved to help Joker, but the madman told him to stop.

"NO! You two finish Batman off! Then help me take care of her!" yelled the Joker as Ace tried to get him to look into her eyes. But the old clown knew better then that. He watched her feet and hands in order to dodge her attacks.

Batman felt Elena's tail tighten and squeeze his last breath of air from his lungs. As his vision began to blur, he caught the glint of her spiked nail as streaked through air in a downwards arc right towards his heart.

That's when he felt it. The girl's whole body seized up and her strangle hold on him fell limply away.

Bruce fell to his knees, hand clutched against his chest as he shuddered and coughed for air.

"_Someone must have knocked her out, but who-"_

"You okay Bats?" asked a familiar voice.

The Dark Knight reached up to his cowl and without thinking, touched his communicator.

"Yeah, I'm fine someone-"

And that's when he realized that Wally's voice had not come from his headset, but from above his head.

His head shot back as his mouth dropped open in shock. Wally was standing right in front of him, in one of his prototype Bat-suits, complete with his cocky smile and all.

"Need a hand?" asked the speedster as he helped Bruce off the floor.

"But-wait- _What?_ How- your ankle…how did you?"

The red-haired man just shrugged and said, "What can I say? I know my ligaments."

Batman blinked and then sent the Flash a glare that clearly said, _Fine, be that way, but you WILL explain later._

Wally sent him another grin, but for some reason… this one seemed subdued. Then he asked, "Are you well enough to look after these two while I help Ace?"

Batman then looked down and saw both Elena and Matt collapsed on the floor in front of him.

"I - of course- But how did-"

Flash held up his right arm and vibrated it.

"_Of course! His experiments! He created a field out of the speedforce to eradicate the Nanotech in their nervous systems!" _

Flash smiled as he saw the look of surprised revelation slide across Batman's face.

"Be right back," said the speedster.

And he zipped off to help Ace.

* * *

**-Joker's POV-**

Meanwhile, the Joker was obvious to the new comer as he was still franticly trying to keep Ace at bay.

He averted more of her telekinetic attacks and rolled to the floor panting heavily.

"There's-no WAY-you….can win! You take…me out…and the kids are as good as lost!"

"Who said I was trying to take you out?" asked Ace softly as she floated to the ground and knelt next to Joker. He cringed and turned away to avoid her frightening eyes. She continued to lean in even closer, until her lips were right next to his ear.

Her warm breath caressed his ear sweetly as she whispered, "I'm just the diversion."

His eyes shot wide open as felt the sharp crack of the blow that sent him flying into the air.

_**CRACK! SNAP!**_

He tumbled through the air like a rag doll.

_**CRACK! SNAP!**_

He caught a glimpse of a black and red blur that sent him hurtling through the air again to the other side of the hall.

_**CRACK! SNAP!**_

Each blow came so fast, and with such force, that he didn't even have time to react.

_**CRACK! SNAP!**_

_**CRACK! SNAP!**_

The Joker coughed up a bit of blood as he finally rolled to a stop onto the floor. He groggily looked up at his attacker. That _symbol_. That infernal Bat-symbol was on the man's chest!

"_How many people are in this BLOODY BAT-FAMILY?!"_

His attacker looked down at him with a face so grim it actually frightened him.

Then, suddenly the man was behind him, griping his hands tightly behind his back. The Joker gasped in pain as he felt some weird force course through his veins. His hands felt like they were on fire as the masked man forced him to get up and kneel.

"Who _are_ you and _WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO ME?!_" yelled the helpless psychopath.

His captive gave him wicked smile that rivaled his own. The man bent down his head and whispered,

"_HA-"_

And plunged his transparent hand right into the Joker's neck,

"HA."

The Joker screamed in unbridled agony as he felt the Nanotech in his nervous system being eaten away.

"_**NO! THIS CAN'T BE!!! I planned for EVERYTHING! I made it FOOL PROOF! FOOL PROOF! THERE'S NO WAY!!"**_

Then the Joker's eyes rolled back into his head and he knew no more.

* * *

**-Flash's POV-**

Wally let the unconscious clown's body fall to the floor with a thump.

With a shaky sigh he wiped the sweat from his brow and collapsed onto the floor.

"Flash!" called out a clearly worried Batman as he limped to his side.

"Are you okay?" asked the Dark Knight as he placed a hand on Wally's shoulder.

Flash looked up at him with hazy eyes and a tired smile.

"Yeah, I think so…."

Wally closed his eyes to check.

"Yeah, my molecules are all stable. I don't think I'll go all _Casper _on you this time."

"You'd better not," grumbled Batman with a smirk.

Flash laughed a little at this. "Yeah, I know, but if it were for a whole lot longer-"

_**SLAM!**_

The violent noise broke off their conversation as the two turned to see Ace pin a lightly struggling Joker to the wall with her telekinetic powers.

"I let you off easy the last time, Joker. But this time…I will make sure you never hurt anyone again," said Ace coolly as invisible hands seemed to take the Joker by the neck…and started to strangle him.

"_OH SHIT!"_

Wally sprang to his feet and raced up to Ace.

"ACE! Don't do it, Ace!" he exclaimed, but she ignored him.

"ACE! PLEASE STOP!" Wally cried as he wrapped one arm around her waist and the other around her outstretched arm; franticly trying to bring it down.

"He has hurt far too many people, Wally. He will find a way to hurt several more," she hauntingly said to him.

"ACE _PLEASE_, I KNOW!" pleaded the hero as tears rolled down his face.

"I KNOW, ACE! The telepathic connection you used on me worked both ways! I know how hard it was for you! I know what he and others did to you. _BUT THIS IS NOT THE WAY!"_ he cried into her shoulder.

"You are not like this Ace. You are _NOT._ Don't sacrifice everything you are just for him! HE ISN'T WORTH IT!"

Suddenly Ace shivered and loosened her hold on the Joker's neck and he began to breathe easier.

"But-" she whimpered, sounding like a very lost and lonely child.

"He isn't, Ace. You are not a monster… he _is_. And he will get his dues one day, but don't let it be by your hand. You have the freedom to choose for yourself. And I know, deep down, what a truly special person you are…..now….please let him go," whispered Wally softly. He had had far too many surprises for one day.

And with that, the Joker fell to the floor free of her grasp.

Ace turned and gave the speedster a quick hug….one that he gladly returned.

As they broke apart Ace wiped the tears from his eyes and said, "I should go."

"Go where?" asked Wally startled at the abruptness of the statement, "Why don't you come back with us? You could join the League….You don't have to be alone anymore."

But Ace just bit her lip and shook her head as she extracted herself from Wally's grasp.

"I-I can't. Not yet….I'm just not ready…..I'm sorry." And just like that she took off into the air and flew out the hole in the roof without another word.

"ACE! Wait!" called Flash out into the night….but she was already gone.

* * *

**-Batman's POV-**

Batman quietly walked over to the red haired man who was staring up at the sky with a lost expression on his face.

"_That…was incredible. He talked her down. How did he do that?"_

"Kid?" whispered the Dark Knight in an attempt to snap Flash out of the trance he was under.

"I- …why did she just leave like that?" asked Flash, sounding very bewildered.

Batman sighed, "I don't know, kid….But she'll come back when she's ready."

Flash just shook his head and sighed as well.

"Flash?" asked Batman when he saw his opening, "How on earth did you find her anyway?'

Wally's head popped up and as started to laugh, "I'll tell you later….but let's just say that QuickTime file of you singing wasn't the _only_ thing I found on your computer."

Batman felt his eye twitch, ….he just couldn't help it. It was just such an absurd thing to say at such a stressful moment let out a short, quick laugh.

"_**YOU!!!"**_ growled an insanely wild voice.

Both heroes turned just in time to see the crazed fire in the Joker's eyes as he launched himself at Wally.

"_**YOU!!! I'LL KILL YOU!!!"**_

It all happened so fast Batman didn't have time to react.

Out of no where a stream of webbing caught the Joker in mid-leap and flung him back against the wall. Both Batman and Flash blinked and shared a look of wonder.

That's when they saw Danny slide down a string of webbing closely followed by Nightwing and Batgirl. The boy landed right in front of Joker and sprayed him with webbing until he was cocooned to the wall.

"Nice job, kid!" said Nightwing as he helped Batgirl down the webbing.

The spider-boy looked embarrassed and scratched the back of his head shyly.

"Thanks."

Batman felt a weight lifted off his shoulders. Danny seemed fine, which meant the other children would be alright as well.

"_**YOU!! YOU'RE THE FLASH AREN'T YOU?!" **_yelled the Joker who had apparently gone off the deep end, _**"YOU MADE HIM LAUGH!! FOR THAT I'LL KILL YOU!!!"**_

Everyone's including Batman's mouths fell right open.

"Whoa! Wait a minute! TIME OUT!" exclaimed Flash as he approached Joker and looked him straight in the eye. "ALL this time. ALL THIS TIME! You kept coming back, tormenting and torturing him! You mean _THAT'S WHY?! BECAUSE YOU COULDN'T MAKE BATS LAUGH?!"_

"YES! And for that I'll-"

Danny spat a wad of web out of his mouth. It hit Joker right in the face, securely sealing his mouth completely shut.

"Whew!" whistled Batgirl at Danny, "Man, kid. You do have style!"

But Danny wasn't paying attention to her; he was staring at the red haired man in the black suit.

"Flash?" asked Danny in a very hopeful voice, "Is-is that really you….."

"Oh Danny," he sighed as he knelt down to the floor, "Yeah, it's me."

Tears leaked from all four of the boy's eyes as he threw himself into the hug.

"Oh Flash!" he cried as he shook with released tension, "I knew you'd find us."

"There, there now," said Flash as he patted the kid on the back, "Everything's going to be fine-"

Bruce frowned as a large rumbling sound started to shake the already weaken walls of the warehouse.

"_Looks like he spoke too soon."_

Everyone stood on their guard with weapons drawn as the rumbling sound got closer. Dust and debris fell from the ceiling as the walls shook with tremendous force. Wally shielded Danny and his two unconscious friends the best he could.

_**BAM!!!**_

The heavy metal doors, that had a hole punched through them from Wally's entrance, burst wide open.

Everyone in the room jumped back as a gigantic warthog charged into the room. It howled an agonizingly painful squeal. The others had to cover their ears from the noise.

Then the beast's eyes rolled back into its head as its massive body slammed down onto the floor with a loud thud.

"WHEW-WHOO!" whooped the singed forms of Cyborg and Booster Gold as they did their victory dance on top of the beast's back.

"We did it! We did it!" they sang as they did a ridiculous parody of a touchdown dance.

"What the heck is this all about?" asked Robin as he was helped into the room by Raven, the two were closely followed by Starfire and Beast Boy who where helping each other stand as well.

Then two large groans came from the two prone figures on the floor. "Did anyone get the number of that bus?" asked Matt as he stood up on shaky legs and Elena slithered up right.

"Guys!" exclaimed Danny as he bowled Matt back to the floor with a tackle hug, "You're both okay!"

"Yes, Danny we are. Except for my spine which is now most likely broken because of you! Will you get off of me!" exclaimed Matt as Danny laughed and helped him to his feet.

"Whoa….yousss guyssss took down the warthog?" hissed Elena at the two men still standing on top of its corpse.

"We sure did!" said Cyborg as he and Booster gave the others a victory sign.

"Yes, indeed!" chirped Skeets as he flew around their heads emitting sparks of joy.

"Well it looks like it's all over and at least everyone's okay," said Beast Boy with a toothy grin.

"Wait a second," sighed Nightwing, "We forgot about Dr. Milo…he got away remember."

"_Damn it! I forgot all about him…well at least we got the Joker."_

While everyone else's spirits we dampened by this new revelation, Cyborg and Booster just folded their arms against their chests and seemed to glow with pride.

"Cyborg?" asked Starfire, "Why are you smiling? This is quite the sad bit of news."

Both Cyborg and Booster Gold turned to each other with a wink and a nod as Booster pulled one of the electric cattle prods from his belt and Cyborg fiddled with something behind the butt of the warthog.

"Funny you should all mention that looser," said Cyborg as he pulled a dirty, sniveling man up by the neck of his lab coat from behind the hog.

Everyone's eyes went wide with surprise.

"Let me go you uncouth hooligans!" growled the madman as he struggled in Cyborg's iron grip. "My beautiful creation! How _dare_ you- _**GGAAAAAAHHHH!!!**_"

"Hehehe…" laughed Booster as he poked the _good_ doctor with the electric cattle prod he was holding.

"How do you like some of your own medicine, Doc?" asked Booster as he gave the man another shock.

"All right…. Enough of that," said Batman as he glared back up at the two young heroes.

Both men didn't look the least bit ashamed though, as Booster hid the cattle prod behind his back and whistled innocently.

"One last problem though," said Batgirl with her index finger pointed at Dr. Milo, "How are we going to convict him? Most of the evidence in the warehouse was destroyed."

To this Robin smiled and pulled out the disk he had burned earlier.

"That's not a problem at all," said the Boy Wonder as he showed the others the disk.

"The whole hard drive of his main computer is copied onto this disk, directly connecting him to Joker. He won't be getting out of jail for a _LONG_ time."

Batman couldn't stop the grin from spreading across his face. Everyone did so well. He couldn't help it. And before he could stop himself he said, "Excellent job, Robin. Excellent work to you all."

Tim's jaw dropped open and he nearly dropped the CD.

"I-I-I-I-" stuttered the young man in complete shock. He never _ever_, had expected to hear those words.

"HA!" yelled Flash to Robin, "You own me a soda!"

And though the statement wasn't incredibly funny, all those involved were so tired that it just struck a cord and made everyone, including Batman, laugh.

As they all sat there laughing joyfully, the distant sound of sirens turned the laughter into groans of disbelief.

"Okay, that tears it!" said Flash exasperated, "This is undeniable proof! The police _**NEVER**_ come on time!"

And once again, everyone started to laugh.

* * *

**-Dr. Milo's POV-**

Dr. Milo was dressed in an orange jump suit. His hands were handcuffed behind his back as he was led down the hall by two police officers.

"_Those filthy hoodlums! Adolescent scum! How dare they destroy my beautiful work?! I don't belong in this hellhole, they do!"_

Milo looked on in contempt at the other prisoners that he was incarcerated with.

He passed by a drunken, slovenly gentleman who was still dressed in his old stained tuxedo. He apparently hadn't been processed yet. Milo turned his noise up and away from him.

"_Ugh…vile. He smells of fish…Must be one of the Penguin's henchmen. Filthy little vermin." _

The police shoved Milo into the cell next to him.

"_Excellent, now I must be subjected to this man's putrid body odor." _

"Get in there you sick son of a bitch!" said the one officer as he slammed the door of the jail cell shut. "You aren't getting out of this cage for a _long time._"

And with that, they left Milo to rot.

Milo dragged himself up into sitting position with his back against the wall.

He was a _genius, _a man whose brilliance was unsurpassed by any other! The wonderment and beauty of his work had finally come to fruition! The potential of his life's work finally realized! And all because his benefactor had gone after Batman, his dreams were dashed away.

"_The FOOL! I told him it was pointless! Now that madman is locked back up in the nuthouse and I'm forced to sit here and rot with these cretins! I'll get him back for this, him and Batman too."_

As Milo sat there, wallowing in his vengeful hatred, the drunkard in the cell next to him began to sing a haunting melody that was terribly warped and off key.

"_Am I bluuue? You'd be, too. If every plan that you haaad… done fell throouugh…"_

Milo smirked at this.

"_Yes…I suppose that is quite the ironic song indeed."_

As he sat there listening to the man's horrid singing, he heard the door open to the holding area.

The tapping of high healed shoes echoed through the corridor.

Finally, the footsteps stopped…. right in front of his cell.

"Dr. Milo…" said a deep feminine voice.

He turned his head toward the sound and opened his eyes.

There…. in front of his jail cell door… stood a heavy set, African American woman holding a black briefcase.

Milo looked the woman up and down suspiciously.

"Yes….and who…pray tell…are you?"

The woman gave him a sweet smile.

"My name is Amanda Waller," she said as she kneeled in front of Dr. Milo's cell door.

"And I have a proposition for you…." with that she opened her briefcase and Milo's eyes went wide.

"_Am I bluuuue? Am I bluuuue? Ain't these tears in my eyes…telling…youuuu……"_

Dr. Milo's answer was in written in his cold, unfeeling smile.

* * *

**Author's Notes:** DONE!!! Done! Well except for the epilogue, which will explain the fate of the kids, it will come soon. But the major action and plot are DONE! Whew!

Okay now, before anyone asks about how the guy in the cell knew the "Am I blue" song. (which I do not own) Batman briefly mentions to Zatanna in the episode that he learned it from a stakeout in one of the Penguin's night clubs. He said he heard it so many times he memorized it. The drunk man in the cell, was one of the Penguin's henchmen and he learned it the same way. I just had to bring it in one more time.

Oh and for those of you wondering about the fate of Dr. Milo. Watch the JLU episode, "The Doomsday Sanction." For his fate is already sealed. Hehehe! That's right! Milo was the one who released Doomsday from Cadmus! Listen to the episode carefully, you'll see a few of the facts that inspired me. The movie, "Batman Beyond, The Return of the Joker" inspired a lot of the plot, too.

Also, I know that Batman says in the Epilogue episode to Shayera that he's "the only one of us that Ace knows." I'm taking that to mean that he was the only one that Ace knew of the people who were presently fighting there. So it works in canon that Wally could know Ace.

So far… I have in the works three sequels. I'll explain them in more detail next time. But know, that one is a one shot and it shall be called "Ace's Wonderland" it will have the deleted scene with Wally in it, her death, and how Bats deals with it. It will be very emotional, but I think it will turn out very lovely.

Thanks again for all your wonderful reviews! They so warm my heart. Now onto the epilogue, write you all again later!


	25. Epilogue

Disclaimer: Grrr! I swear! Every time I start writing, someone calls me on the phone! This time all I had to do was type the word 'Disclaimer' and RING! GAHH! It's a conspiracy I tells you! Like the fact that all of the original seven EXCEPT Wally are in the character archive search list! Lady Jaye, get Question on this pronto! This one's legit!

Anyway, onto the last chapter get ready to Awww…

* * *

**-Epilogue-**

**-One Week Later- **

**-Wally's POV-**

Wally looked up at the familiar stone structure. In a way, it was like a second home to him. As he slowly walked up the stone path, he knew the kids would be in good hands here, Ray would make sure of that.

Wally smiled and hopped up the stairs just like he'd use to on his way to his internship.

He opened the big glass doors and stepped into Ivy University's main science building. It was lovingly nicknamed the "Atom" Building in honor of the infamous professor who worked there.

The one thing he loved most about this building was that it never seemed cold or sterile like the other science buildings on campus. The New England architecture made the whole facility seem warm and homey.

As he walked down the hall, a few people he knew waved to him and said hello. It was a very nice environment to work in. Not to say that his job at the crime lab in Central City wasn't great, his colleagues were awesome! But…there was just something about this place that made Wally feel like he really belonged.

He came to a stop in front of a familiar door, one that read, "Dr. Ray Palmer - Head of University Research." Wally smiled and gave the door a knock.

"Come in," called the muffled voice and Wally opened the door.

Ray was sitting in his old beat up swivel chair, typing away at his old laptop.

Wally just leaned on the doorframe and watched him go. Ray was in one of his "Brain Blast" modes, which meant that he had just conceived of a brilliant idea and had to type every last bit of it down before it flew out of his head all together. As the scientist's typing slowed to a stop, Wally gave a quick cough and Ray brought his head up and blinked at him.

"Oh, Wally! I'm so sorry, I lost all track of time!" said the professor as he went around his desk and shook Wally's hand.

Wally just laughed, "Please Ray! It's not like I'm not use to it by now! So what's up, Doc?"

"Well the kids are doing in much better," replied Ray as he led Wally down the hall, "We've been able to extract all the Nanotech from their systems by injecting them with new Nanobots to act as antibodies."

Wally nodded his head in understanding. The new Nanotech would hunt down and destroy the old, infected robots just like white blood cells would do to take down infected cells.

"We also have determined the root of most of their genetic mutations. The Nanobots and the anti-mutagen are rewriting their DNA and RNA back to their original codes. It'll take a while, but I'm positive we'll have all the kids changed back to normal in no time," said Ray as he opened a door to a different hall.

"That's great to hear, Ray. Bats and I were really worried about that," sighed Wally as relief flowed over him.

"Batman?" asked Ray quietly, "But wait, I thought you went home a week ago."

Wally just smiled at him, knowing how absurd it seemed that the two were still in communication with each other now that their time together was up.

"I did," said Wally, "But that doesn't mean we don't still talk though. I'll explain it all later…."

The two then walked into the main lab.

Elena was sitting on the lab table getting a shot from Katie. Her tail had been replaced by legs once more. The gold of her snakelike eyes was fading back to their original brown. She still had quite a few scales here and there, but they two were receding back into her naturally tan skin.

Sitting on her right was Matt, holding her hand gently for support. The fur on his face was nearly gone, but his claws and pointed ears still remained. He was staring sweetly at Elena and hadn't even noticed the two men come in.

On a chair next to them sat Danny. The fur on his face was nearly gone, and he once again had only two eyes. His pupils were returning and his extra set of arms and fangs were receding. He sat there sucking on a lollypop doing what he did best, making fun of the _Love Birds_.

Wally felt himself swell with pride. Just by seeing them happy and healthy again, he knew they were going to be okay.

"OI! I come all the way to Boston to see you guys and I don't even get a hug!" exclaimed Wally pretending to look offended.

The three kids jump up out of their seats with cheers of joy as they ran to Wally, hugging him tightly.

"Wally! _Wally_ it's really you!"

"Man, Wally we missed you!"

"Is everyone at the orphanage okay? They know we didn't leave on purpose, right?"

Wally just laughed and answered all their questions. He saw Ray smiling at them out of the corner of his eye. He stared at the three kids with love and compassion, Wally could tell that his little trio had already stolen Dr. Palmer's heart.

After a few hours and several chocolate bars later, it was time for Wally to go.

"I'll come by again in a week or so to check up on all of you, okay?" And with that, Wally waved good-bye to them and he and Ray walked out the door.

The two men walked down the hall in silence. Each appearing to have something important on their minds.

"Uh…Ray?" asked Wally.

Ray turned to him, "What's on your mind?"

"What's…what's going to happen to all the kids once they're cured? …..I mean, will they all have to go back to orphanages…."

Ray let loose a relieved sigh, "Well….I actually don't think we have to worry about that."

Wally looked at Ray questioningly.

"You see, we've already gotten a lot of inquires about the kids and how people can help. All the news publicity of their plight has gotten a lot of people's attention, and it turns out that several families want to adopt them, and give them proper homes."

Wally felt like his heart was about to burst. Joy lit up his blue eyes like a pair of stars. He couldn't believe it. It was all that he could have asked for and more!

"Um….actually, Wally, there was something I wanted to ask you…" said Ray looking kind of shy.

"Ask away!"

"Well….it's about the trio…you know those three really well, right?"

Wally looked a little confused for a moment. "Yeah…..is something wrong?"

"Oh! Oh no….it's just…I-I….well you know that my biggest regret about my divorce was that I never got to have a family….and well…I was wondering…if you thought they would like….to well…"

Wally could hardly believe his ears.

"Ray…" he asked almost breathlessly, "you really want to adopt them?"

"Um…well yeah, I do. They're such sweet kids. I-"

But Wally didn't let him finish, he just pounced on him and gave him a big hug.

"That'll mean the world to them, Ray. Trust me…they couldn't have found anyone better to be their father!" said Wally as he let Ray go and wiped a tear from his eye.

"You really think so?" asked Ray softly.

"I know so," said Wally.

The two talked a bit more as they walked out of the school. Ray and Wally said their good-byes and the speedster took off for home, knowing that all was well.

* * *

**-Later that Night-**

**-Bruce's POV-**

"_6:03…He's late."_

Bruce sat in the library reading his newspaper when he heard the doorbell ring.

"Hey Al, what's new?" asked the voice at the door.

"Good to see you, Master Wally. Master Bruce is waiting in the library," said the butler as he showed the speedster inside.

When the two men entered the room, Bruce put his newspaper down on top of the chess table.

"You're late," he said with a glare.

Wally just rolled his eyes.

"We'll excuse me, but being three minutes late is _NOT_ the end of the world!" exclaimed Wally as he sat in the seat opposite Bruce in front of the chess table. He ripped the offending paper off and set up the clock timer.

"You're the Fastest Man Alive, you should be on time," replied Bruce as he set up the chess pieces.

Before Wally had left the mansion, Bruce had commented that Wally had better not get behind in his training.

* * *

**-Flashback-**

"_I guess that means you'll have to train me once a week then…" suggested Wally as he was walking out the door._

"_I suppose I will …For the sake of the League, of course," said Bruce huffily. _

"_Of course," said Wally sarcastically, knowing full well what Bruce was doing. _

_Well two could play at that game._

"_I will attend these sessions of physical and emotional torment, on one condition," said the red haired man thrusting his index finger into the air. _

_Bruce frowned at this. _

_He didn't like anyone else offering stipulations but himself._

"_And just what would that be?"_

* * *

And so it had been decided that on Sundays, the two men would meet for a rousing game of chess, and on Thursdays, Wally would attend training sessions with the Dark Knight.

"It's your move, hotshot," said Bruce as he hit the switch on clock next to him with a _click_.

Wally made his move.

"You know I went to see Ray and the kids today…."

_Click._

"…How are they doing?" asked Bruce as he moved his knight up.

_Click._

"They've found a way to cure them all. It'll take sometime, but they'll be back to normal selves soon." and with that Wally took Bruce's pawn.

_Click._

"Good, I'm glad," said Bruce a little gruffly as he tried to trap Wally's queen.

_Click._

"Ray said that a lot of people want to adopt the kids, too…"

Wally moved his queen out of harms way.

_Click._

"Well that's a relief," replied Bruce as he retaliated by taking out Wally's bishop.

_Click._

"Yeah…tell me about it….Ray even said that he was going to adopt Elena, Matt, and Danny!" exclaimed Wally as he moved his rook out from behind his pawn.

_Click._

On hearing this news, Bruce looked up from the board. "You're kidding." It was almost too good to be true.

"Nope, he asked me if I thought it was a good idea. Ray's a great guy, he's always wanted a family, now all of them will get to have one….Oh and it's still your move, Bats," said Wally pointing down at the board.

Bruce gave him a small grin and went back to the game.

"_This kid is really something else."_

After an hour of fast paced game play, both combatants were down to last of their pieces, in fact they each had so few, that neither could put the other in check.

The two stared each other down.

With a smirk, Bruce said, "….Looks like it's a draw."

Wally shrugged and replied, "Guess so….want to play again?"

The two looked at each other, knowing now just how different, and yet similar they were.

Bruce had finally found someone to test his limits, someone he could truly understand and respect.

"Bring it on," said Bruce with a smirk.

And in the end… that's all that needed to be said.

**THE END**

* * *

Author's Notes: My master work has been completed!!!!! Bwhahaha! I'd like to thank ":)" "mangos" and "animelover" my main anonymous reviewers for all their great reviews because I was never able to thank them in a reply. I'd also like to thank all my signed reviewers, you all are great! Hugs to you all! I'd also like to give a shout out to Wikapedia and The World's Finest websites for being my go to sources for name spellings and quick comic/show based background info.

Thank you everyone for sticking by me through this Dramatic Humorous Angsty Crime Horror Suspenseful Mysterious Sci-Fi Action Adventure Musical Friendship Crossover (with some Romance) Genre Crushing, thing-uma-fic of DOOM!

All Mists numerous characters come out and take a bow!

And finally, what you've all been waiting for, the sequel info! "Ace's Wonderland" will be out soon as a companion piece to "Respect is Earned." The first sequel will come out after that, I'm taking my time with it because Mists is going back to grad school at the end of August. I will try my best to update at least once a month, but school comes first. It will be called, "From Respect to Friendship" and will follow the events of this story through to the end of JLU. It will have deleted scenes from JLU episodes as well as new stories in between. Other major sequels will follow after that, but those are still in the planning stages.

Thank you all once again for your support! I can't believe I'm almost at three hundred reviews! Thank you all so much, it was more than I had ever hoped for. I'll write you all again soon!

Mists-out!


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